X 


E  WEST  INDIES  AND  THEIR  OWNERS 


J/TEDSTWTES  ENGLAND       FRANCE       HOLLAND 


CUBA 


DOMINICAN  REB 


VENEZUELA 


L 


A 


A    DOMINICAN    CAPRESSE 


THE  BOOK  OF  THE 
WEST  INDIES 


BY 


A.  HYATT  VERRILL 

AUTHOR    OF 

PORTO    RICO,   PAST   AND   PRESENT,"  "THE   OCEAN   AND   ITS 
MYSTERIES,"  ETC.,  ETC. 


NEW  YORK 

E.  P.  DUTTON  &  COMPANY 

681  FIFTH  AVENUE 

1917 


COPYRIGHT    1917 
BY 

E.  P.  DUTTON  &  CO. 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  America 


PREFACE 


STRETCHING  in  a  vast  semicircle,  from  Florida 
to  the  tip  of  South  America,  lies  the  archipelago 
known  as  the  West  Indies. 

With  marvelous  climate,  their  shores  washed 
by  the  bluest  of  blue  seas,  ever  swept  by  the  re- 
freshing trade  winds,  luxuriant  beyond  words, 
inexpressibly  beautiful,  and  varying  in  character 
from  awe-inspiring,  rugged  masses  of  mile-high 
mountains  to  low-lying  sandy  cays,  the  West 
Indies  afford  interests  and  attractions  to  suit 
every  taste. 

No  two  are  alike;  each  possesses  an  individual- 
ity, a  charm,  a  fascination  all  its  own.  If  you 
seek  quiet  and  rest,  there  are  spots  in  these  lovely 
isles  where  time  has  stood  still  for  centuries;  if 
fond  of  history  and  memories  of  the  brave  and 
bloody  deeds  of  the  past,  you  will  find  interest  a 
plenty  in  the  Antilles.  Here  was  the  cradle  of 
European  civilization  in  the  New  World;  here 
was  the  haunt  of  pirate  and  buccaneer;  here  the 
great  nations  of  Europe  struggled  for  supremacy 
through  centuries,  and  here  are  buildings,  scenes, 

m 


2045775 


IV 


PREFACE 


and  ways  of  life  contemporaneous  with  Columbus 
and  his  mail-clad  conquistadores. 

Or,  if  one  desires  magnificent  scenery;  if  lus- 
cious fruits,  gorgeous  flowers,  marvelous  plants, 
stupendous  cataracts,  lofty  peaks,  or  sublime 
active  volcanoes,  appeal  to  you,  the  West  Indies 
will  provide  them  all.  On  the  other  hand,  he 
who  feels  lost  without  all  the  comforts  and  con- 
veniences, the  news  and  the  accompaniments 
and  luxuries  of  twentieth-century  civilization,  he 
who  seeks  great  cities,  golf,  horse-racing,  dances, 
balls,  society, — even  the  opera, — may  find  all 
these  in  the  West  Indies. 

Here,  almost  at  our  doors — within  from  three 
to  ten  days'  sail  of  New  York — are  some  fifty 
islands  varying  in  size  from  Cuba — vast  and  con- 
tinental with  its  length  of  eight  hundred  miles — 
to  tiny  islet  gems  a  few  acres  in  extent.  Here 
one  may  dwell  amidst  all  the  luxuries  and  moder- 
nity of  up-to-date  cities  teeming  with  hundreds 
of  thousands  of  inhabitants  or  one  may  live  in 
sleepy,  age-old  towns  and  quaint  villages  quite 
out  of  the  world.  One  may  travel  by  Pullman 
express  trains  for  day  after  day  through  a  scenic 
wonderland,  may  whirr  over  perfect  roads  in 
luxurious  automobiles,  or,  again,  may  follow 
narrow  trails  on  horse  or  donkey  back  in  lands 
where  a  wheeled  vehicle  was  never  seen. 

Even  climate  may  be  found  to  suit  the  most 


PREFACE  v 

exacting.  You  may  bask  in  the  sunshine  and 
bathe  in  the  azure  tepid  water  beneath  waving 
palms  if  you  love  the  ardent  heat  of  the  tropics; 
you  may  find  a  climate  of  perpetual  June  on  the 
verdured  hills  where  roses  bloom  forever,  or,  at 
a  higher  altitude,  you  may  find  an  overcoat  use- 
ful and  will  shiver  under  double  blankets  at  night. 

Perhaps  the  very  diversity  in  the  West  Indies 
is  their  greatest  charm,  for  the  people  are  as  varied 
as  the  scenery  and  climate  of  their  island  homes. 
Spanish,  French,  Dutch,  British, — each  island 
reflects,  in  a  measure,  the  characteristics  of  its 
mother  country  and  the  customs,  habits,  language, 
and  ways  of  each  are  adhered  to  most  tenaciously. 

It  is  like  traveling  from  one  European  nation 
to  another  to  tour  the  islands.  One  day  you  are 
beneath  the  white-crossed,  scarlet  flag  of  Den- 
mark; the  next,  you  are  under  the  banner  of  old 
England.  You  fall  asleep  with  the  strains  of  "  God 
Save  the  King"  wafted  to  you  from  the  British 
fort,  and  gaze  shoreward  the  next  morning  to 
see  the  tricolor  fluttering  above  a  typically  French 
town.  You  spend  a  forenoon  strolling  about  a 
town  which  might  be  on  Mediterranean  shores 
and  with  the  soft  babel  of  Spanish  in  your  ears, 
and,  ere  nightfall,  look  upon  tiled  roofs,  chimney- 
pots, and  dormer  windows,  with  busy  market- 
women  clattering  about  in  wooden  shoes,  while 
"Yah  Mynheer"  greets  your  wondering  ears, 


vi  PREFACE 

and  you  feel  as  if  you  had  been  whisked  from 
Spain  to  Holland.  You  pay  your  boatman  in 
shillings  and  pence,  and,  a  few  hours  after,  are 
bargaining  with  another  in  francs  and  centimes, 
and,  ere  another  day  has  ended,  you  may  be 
striving  to  mentally  reduce  guilders  to  dollars  or 
patacon  to  centavos  and  pesetas.  And  if  you 
don't  like  foreign  ways,  if  you  feel  strange  and  ill 
at  ease  amid  people  whose  speech  you  cannot 
grasp,  you  need  not  despair,  for  Uncle  Sam  also 
has  a  foothold  in  this  polyglot  archipelago,  and 
of  all  the  charming  islands,  few  can  boast  greater 
attractions,  more  historic  interest,  or  more  numer- 
ous advantages  than  the  isle  above  which  waves 
the  Stars  and  Stripes. 

That  Americans  have  not  long  ago  more  fully 
awakened  to  the  attractions,  advantages,  and 
lures  of  the  West  Indies  is  amazing.  Until  the 
European  War,  thousands  of  our  citizens  went 
to  the  Riviera,  to  the  Mediterranean,  to  the  Orient, 
and  elsewhere  seeking  the  very  climate,  the  same 
scenery,  and  the  identical  things  to  be  found  so 
much  nearer  to  our  shores.  Even  to-day,  when 
the  American  tropics  are  more  in  the  public  eye 
than  ever  before,  few  Americans  have  a  correct 
idea  of  what  the  West  Indies  offer  or  the  truth 
about  them. 

But  in  a  way  our  people  cannot  be  too  greatly 
blamed,  for  our  British  cousins  are  almost  as 


PREFACE  vii 

ignorant  of  their  West  Indian  colonies  as  are 
Americans.  Indeed  the  lack  of  knowledge,  even 
among  officials,  is  incredible,  and  the  following 
anecdote,  told  to  me  by  a  government  official  of 
the  British  West  Indies,  may  serve  as  an  illustra- 
tion of  this.  The  official,  a  retired  army  officer, 
was  appointed  to  a  post  in  Nevis.  Anxious  to 
learn  something  of  his  new  home  he  made  many 
inquiries  but  no  one  could  give  him  information. 
At  last  he  sought  a  government  gazette  and  found 
the  following:  "Nevis,  one  of  the  Leeward  Islands. 
Subject  to  earthquakes,  epidemics,  and  hurricanes. 
Chief  town  submerged." 

Such  misconceptions  in  regard  to  the  islands 
have,  no  doubt,  done  much  to  prevent  an  interest 
in  them  and  while  a  few,  such  as  Cuba,  Porto 
Rico,  and  Jamaica,  are  becoming  popular  winter 
resorts,  yet  the  great  majority  of  the  West  Indies, — 
the  most  beautiful,  the  most  interesting,  and  the 
most  delightful  are  terra  incognita  to  most  people. 

Even  those  who  have  heard  of  the  smaller 
islands  have  no  tangible  ideas  in  regard  to  them, 
until  they  have  actually  visited  the  islands.  They 
appear  so  minute  and  unimportant  on  the  maps — 
mere  pin  points  in  comparison  with  the  mainland, 
— that  it  is  difficult  to  realize  that  they  are  really 
large,  that  they  are  covered  by  mile-high  moun- 
tains, that  they  support  large  towns  and  cities,  or 
that  they  are  worth  visiting. 


viii  PREFACE 

It  is  invariably  a  wonderful  surprise  to  the 
stranger  when  he  first  sights  these  "specks"  of 
land  and  finds  the  shore-line  stretching  away  from 
horizon  to  horizon  in  a  succession  of  towering 
mountains,  broad  valleys,  and  wide  plains. 

Still  another  popular  idea  is  that  the  West 
Indies  are  unbearably  hot;  that  because  they  are 
near  the  equator  they  must  be  torrid  in  tempera- 
ture, and  that  they  are  hotbeds  of  disease  and 
swarm  with  noxious  insects  and  poisonous  reptiles. 

All  this  is  absolute  nonsense.  The  islands  are 
far  healthier  than  many  of  our  Northern  cities; 
yellow  fever  is  unknown  in  most  of  them,  and 
has  not  occurred  for  thirty  or  forty  years  in  any 
of  the  smaller  islands,  and  two  of  the  West  Indies 
— Cuba  and  Porto  Rico — lead  the  entire  world 
in  point  of  health. 

As  to  climate,  the  West  Indies  are  never  as  hot 
as  our  own  towns  in  midsummer.  The  tempera- 
ture rarely  rises  above  85°,  there  is  a  variation  of 
only  a  few  degrees  throughout  the  year,  and  sun- 
stroke and  heat  prostration  are  unknown.  The 
trade  winds  blow  ceaselessly,  showers  keep  every- 
thing fresh  and  green,  and,  best  of  all,  the  houses, 
clothing,  and  life  are  all  adapted  to  a  warm  climate. 

Insect  pests  are  far  less  abundant  than  in  the 
North,  fiies  are  not  as  troublesome,  there  are  few 
mosquitoes — save  in  swampy  districts  where  no 
visitor  is  likely  to  live — and  only  in  one  or  two 


PREFACE  ix 

islands  are  there  any  poisonous  snakes,  and,  where 
these  do  occur,  they  are  extremely  rare — far 
rarer  than  the  venomous  reptiles  in  the  vicinity 
of  New  York  City.  It  is  to  destroy  such  errone- 
ous ideas  of  the  West  Indies,  to  paint  them  in 
their  true  colors,  to  point  out  their  manifold 
attractions,  charms,  beauties,  and  peculiarities, 
and  to  provide  a  reliable,  concise,  and  yet  complete 
handbook  on  the  West  Indies  that  this  book  has 
been  written. 

My  greatest  regret  is  that  space  is  so  limited, 
that  little  can  be  said  of  some  of  the  most  delight- 
ful and  loveliest  of  the  Caribbees;  but  perhaps 
it  is  just  as  well  that  everything  is  not  described; 
that  all  the  charms  and  interests  of  the  islands 
are  not  mentioned.  There  is  all  the  more  incen- 
tive for  my  readers  to  visit  the  islands,  to  learn 
and  discover  for  themselves,  and,  in  doing  this, 
they  will  come  to  love  and  appreciate  the  West 
Indies  the  more. 

HYATT  VERRILL 

September  First, 

Nineteen  Seventeen 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

PROLOGUE,  INTRODUCING  THE  WEST  INDIES      .  i 

CHAPTER 

I. — BERMUDA         .        .  .         .10 

II. — THE  VIRGIN  ISLES  ....  31 

III. — ISLANDS  QUITE  OUT  OF  THE  WORLD    .  40 

IV. — ST.  KITTS  AND  NEVIS        ...  47 

V. — ANTIGUA  AND  ITS  NEIGHBORS    .         .  55 

VI. — GUADELOUPE,    WHERE    WAVES    THE 

TRICOLOR    .         .         ...  65 

VII. — DOMINICA,  THE  CARIBBEAN  WONDER- 
LAND    72 

VIII. — MARTINIQUE,  THE  LAND  OF  JOSEPHINE  81 

IX. — ST.  LUCIA,  AN  ISLAND  STRONGHOLD     .  88 

X. — BARBADOS  :  THE  TIGHT  LITTLE,  RIGHT 

LITTLE  ISLAND     ....  98 

XI. — ST.  VINCENT,  A  NEGLECTED  EDEN      .  121 
XII. — GRENADA,  THE  ISLE  OF  SPICE     .         .129 

XIII.— TRINIDAD,  THE' MAGNIFICENT    .         .  144 

xi 


xii  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XIV. — SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC          .     174 

XV. — PORTO    Rico,    OUR   WEST    INDIAN 

COLONY 227 

XVI. — JAMAICA,     THE     ISLAND    WHERE     A 

PIRATE  RULED     ....     261 

XVII. — THE    BAHAMAS,    ISLANDS    OF    THE 

PINK  PEARL        ....     289 

XVIII. — CUBA,  THE  PEARL  OF  THE  ANTILLES    .     300 

APPENDIX 

GLOSSARY  OF  THE  WEST  INDIES  .  351 
USEFUL  BITS  OF  INFORMATION  .  .  441 
INDEX 453 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE 

A  DOMINICAN  CAPRESSE          .         .     Frontispiece 

OLD  FORT,  PORTO  Rico  v 

OLD  CHURCH,  ANTIGUA xvii 

OLD  BELL-TOWER,  JAMAICA     ....  9 

MAP  OF  BERMUDA 12 

CUT  CORAL  READY  TO  BE  USED  AS  BUILDING 

STONE,  BERMUDA 17 

CATHEDRAL  ROCKS,  BERMUDA          .        .         .  20 

NATURAL  ARCH,  BERMUDA      ....  20 

SHARK'S  HOLE,  BERMUDA       ....  26 

INSCRIPTION  ON  SPANISH  ROCKS,  BERMUDA       .  30 

PIRATES'  ISLAND,  SAMANA  BAY,  SANTO  DOMINGO  31 

LANDING  PLACE,  ST.  THOMAS          ...  32 
SUGAR  ESTATE,  ST.  CROIX               •         .         .32 

OLD  FORT,  ST.  THOMAS 39 

ST.  EUSTATIUS  FROM  THE  SEA.         ...  40 

CHURCH  OF  ST.  JOSEPH,  JAMAICA     ...  46 

BASSETERRE,  ST.  KITTS  48 


xiv  ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGB 

THE  CIRCUS,  ST.  KITTS 48 

OLD  FORT,  ENTRANCE  TO  ANTIGUA  HARBOR      .  55 
VIEW  OF  ST.  JOHN,  ANTIGUA  !.         .         .         -59 

MONTSERRAT  FROM  THE  SEA  ....  62 

WILD  BIRDS,  DOMINICA           ....  64 

OLD  BRIDGE,  GUADELOUPE     .         .         .         •  7* 

CARIB  FISHING  CANOES           ....  72 

SOUFFRIERE,  DOMINICA          ....  74 

CARIB  GIRL,  DOMINICA 76 

ENTRANCE  TO  BOTANIC  GARDEN,  DOMINICA      .  79 

HARBOR,  THE  LESSER  ANTILLES      ...  80 

FORT  ROYAL  (FORT  DE  FRANCE),  MARTINIQUE  81 

FORT  DE  FRANCE,  MARTINIQUE        ...  86 

COALING  A  SHIP,  ST.  LUCIA     ....  86 

PITONS,  ST.  LUCIA 88 

GATHERING  SEA  EGGS,  BARBADOS    .         .         .100 

THE   WIND-SWEPT    MAHOGANY    TREES,    BAR- 
BADOS 100 

A  BARBADOS  ROAD         .         .         .  .  .     in 

A  BARBADOS  LANDSCAPE        .         .  .  .     in 

ON  THE  WINDWARD  COAST,  BARBADOS  .  .120 

A  BIT  OF  WATER-FRONT,  ST.  VINCENT  .  .128 

NUTMEGS  GROWING,  GRENADA        .  .  .129 


ILLUSTRATIONS  xv 

PAGE 

ST.  GEORGE,  GRENADA 129 

STREET  IN  ST.  GEORGE,  GRENADA    .         .         .  129 

PORT  OF  SPAIN,  TRINIDAD       ....  144 

OPENING  COCOA  PODS,  TRINIDAD     .         .         .  147 

A  COOLIE  GIRL,  TRINIDAD      ....  152 

THE  BLUE  BASIN,  TRINIDAD  ....  158 
ENTERING  THE  BOCAS,  TRINIDAD  .  .  .163 
DIGGING  ASPHALT,  TRINIDAD  .  .  .  .163 

THE  HIGH  WOODS,  TRINIDAD           .         .         .  166 

A  RIDING  BULL,  SAN  DOMINGO        .         .         .  180 

THE  GATE  IN  CITY  WALL,  SAN  DOMINGO.         .  204 

HOMENAJE  TOWER,  SAN  DOMINGO  .         .         .  204 

TOMB  OF  COLUMBUS,  SAN  DOMINGO         .         .  208 

PUERTO  PLATA,  SAN  DOMINGO         .         .         .  226 

THE  MORRO,  PORTO  Rico       ....  227 

MAP  OF  THE  CITY  OF  SAN  JUAN      .        .         .  229 

STREET  IN  PONCE,  PORTO  Rico        .         .         .  234 

CITY  WALL  AND  CASA  BLANCA,  PORTO  Rico     .  234 

COMERCIO  VALLEY,  PORTO  Rico      .        .         .  241 

MARTIN  PENA  BRIDGE,  PORTO  Rico         .         .  246 

TOBACCO  UNDER  SHADE,  PORTO  Rico       .         .  246 

AUTO-ROAD  MAP  OF  PORTO  Rico    .         .         .  250 


xvi  ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE 

THE  MEETING  OF  THE  OLD  AND  NEW,  PORTO 

Rico 254 

A  MOUNTAIN  HIGHWAY,  PORTO  Rico       .         .     254 
SAN  JUAN  AND  COLON  PLAZA,  PORTO  Rico        .     258 

SAN  DOMINGO 260 

MAP  OF  JAMAICA  .         .         .         .  .     262 

ALONG  THE  SHORE,  JAMAICA   ....     269 

BLUE  HOLE,  JAMAICA 288 

FORT  FINCASTLE,  NASSAU       ....     299 

THE  MORRO  AT  SANTIAGO  DE  CUBA          .         .     300 
MAP  OF  HAVANA  ......     302 

STREET  IN  SANTIAGO  DE  CUBA         .         .         .     306 
CHURCH  OF  THE  ANGELS,  CUBA       .         .         .312 

CALLE  OBISPO,  CUBA 312 

THE  PRADO,  HAVANA,  CUBA  .         .         .         .316 
PRINCIPE  FORT,  HAVANA        .         .         .         .351 

IN  CUBA 352 

WRECK  ON  THE  SHORE,  BERMUDA    .         .         .440 


The  Book  of  the  West  Indies 


PROLOGUE 

INTRODUCING  THE  WEST  INDIES 

A  GREAT  many  people — the  majority  one  might 
almost  say — have  but  a  very  vague  idea  of  the 
West  Indies.  Nearly  everyone  knows  they  are 
"somewhere  down  South";  many  are  aware  that 
they  are  north  of  South  America;  a  large  propor- 
tion can  name  Cuba,  Jamaica,  Haiti,  St.  Thomas, 
and  Porto  Rico;  a  few  may  be  able  to  add  Marti- 
nique and  Barbados  to  the  list,  but  scarce  one  in 
a  thousand  can  recall  the  names  of  the  other  islands 
or  can  give  any  accurate  information  in  regard  to 
the  climate,  people,  nationality,  products,  or  other 
features  of  the  islands;  their  size,  or  their  relative 
positions. 

In  some  pigeon-hole  in  the  minds  of  most  people 
is  a  dim  and  hazy  recollection  of  school-day  knowl- 
edge of  the  West  Indies, — a  half -forgotten  memory 
of  a  scant  page  in  the  geography  devoted  to  the 


2  THE  WEST  INDIES 

islands,  a  brief  statement  that  they  were  hot, 
pestilential,  peopled  by  negroes,  subject  to  earth- 
quakes and  hurricanes,  and  that  their  sole  contri- 
butions to  the  world's  wealth  were  sugar  and 
rum.  As  to  their  appearance,  a  few  rude  wood- 
cuts come  to  mind;  pictures  of  half -naked  negresses 
dancing  to  the  strum  of  banjos  in  rubbish-littered, 
squalid  streets;  of  broad-hatted,  besashed,  fierce- 
whiskered  horsemen  holding  menacing  whips 
above  black  minstrel -like  laborers;  of  frantic 
people,  rushing  through  a  chaos  of  flashing  light- 
ning, inky  clouds,  and  flying,  shattered  trees,  or 
perchance,  even  a  small  map,  whereon  were 
numerous  pink,  yellow,  and  green  dots  collectively 
labeled  "The  West  Indies." 

With  such  meager  knowledge  of  these  islands  and 
with  such  erroneous  ideas  in  regard  to  them,  it 
is  something  of  a  shock  to  learn  the  truth,  to 
visit  the  islands,  and  to  find  our  half-formed 
conceptions  totally  shattered  and  cast  to  the 
winds. 

As  one  steams,  day  after  day,  along  a  coast 
stretching  inland  to  distant  mile-high  mountains 
it  is  indeed  difficult  to  believe  that  the  seemingly 
interminable  shores  are  those  of  one  of  the  "specks" 
on  the  map  and  not  of  a  continent.  As  we  travel 
in  luxurious  Pullman  express  trains  through  mar- 
velous scenery,  past  palatial  homes  and  vast 
cultivated  fields  hour  after  hour,— for  a  day 


PROLOGUE  3 

and  a  night  and  more, — it  seems  impossible  that 
we  are  on  one  of  these  colored  dots  of  our  geog- 
raphies. And  when,  instead  of  gamboling  ne- 
gresses  in  filthy  mudholes,  we  see  trolley  cars  and 
motor  cars,  perfectly  dressed  men,  and  women 
who  might  have  stepped  from  the  latest  Parisian 
fashion-plate,  broad  asphalt  boulevards  and  huge 
department  stores,  we  begin  to  realize  how  little 
we  really  know  of  the  world  beyond  our  narrow 
sphere  of  daily  life. 

To  many  it  will  come  as  a  distinct  surprise  to 
learn  that  Cuba,  placed  upon  the  map  of  the 
United  States,  would  stretch  from  New  York  to 
Indianapolis  and  would  cover  a  space  the  entire 
width  of  New  Jersey;  that  Santo  Domingo  is  as 
large  as  the  State  of  Maine,  is  three  times  the  size 
of  Belgium,  and  only  a  trifle  smaller  than  Portu- 
gal; that  more  shipping  enters  and  leaves  the 
harbor  of  Havana  than  any  other  port  in  America, 
with  the  exception  of  New  York;  that  two  of  the 
"pestilential"  West  Indian  islands  rank  first  and 
second  of  all  the  countries  in  the  world  in  point 
of  health;  that  the  first  university  in  America 
was  in  the  West  Indies  and  that  students  were 
taught  and  graduated  from  this  college  a  hundred 
years  ere  the  Pilgrims  landed  at  Plymouth  Rock, 
and,  finally,  that  to  visit  all  the  islands,  without 
making  a  stop  or  going  over  the  same  route  twice, 
would  mean  a  voyage  of  twelve  thousand  miles 


4  THE  WEST  INDIES 

and  would  require  over  a  month  of  steady  steam- 
ing day  and  night ! 

Ordinarily  the  West  Indies  are  divided  into 
two  groups,  the  Greater  and  Lesser  Antilles,  but 
in  reality  they  are  separated  into  several  divisions, 
known  as,  the  Greater  Antilles,  the  Bahamas, 
the  Virgin  Islands,  the  Leeward  Islands,  the  Wind- 
ward Islands,  and  the  Coast  Islands,  some  of 
which  are  political  divisions  and  others  geographi- 
cal, but  which  are  well-defined,  well-recognized, 
and  serve  to  obviate  confusion. 

From  Cuba,  barely  ninety  miles  from  Key 
West  at  the  tip  of  the  Florida  Keys,  the  islands 
stretch  in  a  broken,  irregular  semicircle  to  the 
northern  coast  of  South  America,  and,  within  the 
barrier  thus  formed,  enclose  the  vast,  almost 
land-locked,  Caribbean  Sea  and  the  Gulf  of  Mex- 
ico,— a  body  of  water,  to  cross  which,  one  must 
sail  as  far  as  from  New  York  to  Liverpool.  And 
of  vital  importance  to  us  is  this  great  expanse  of 
enclosed  sea.  In  fact,  the  very  life  and  existence 
of  our  country  and  our  people  depend  upon  it, : 
for  this  is  the  source  of  the  Gulf  Stream,  that 
stupendous,  ever-moving,  ocean  river  of  warm 
water  which  flows  northward  off  our  coast  and 
makes  life  and  vegetation  possible  in  a  land  which 
otherwise  would  be  a  frigid  waste. 

Through  the  narrow  openings  between  the 
Lesser  Antilles  the  ceaseless  trade  winds  and  the 


PROLOGUE  5 

revolution  of  the  earth  force  the  waters  from 
the  broad  Atlantic,  and,  finding  no  other  outlet, 
the  water  rushes  out  between  the  Greater  Antilles 
and  through  the  Straits  of  Florida.  Immeasur- 
able in  its  immensity  and  resistless  force,  is  this 
greatest  of  streams,  but  some  faint  conception  of 
its  volume  may  be  gained  from  the  fact  that 
through  the  Florida  Straits  alone  there  flows  each 
day  a  mass  of  water  equal  to  three  hundred  thou- 
sand Mississippi  Rivers! 

Yet,  despite  this  stupendous  overflow  of  water 
which  escapes,  the  sea,  within  the  chain  of  islands, 
is  ever  piled  higher  than  the  ocean  without,  and 
thus  we  have  the  strange  phenomenon  of  islands 
on  whose  one  coast  the  tide  rises  and  falls  six  feet 
or  more,  while  on  the  other  the  rise  and  fall  is  not 
as  many  inches.  Ages  ago,  no  doubt,  the  Carib- 
bean was  an  inland  sea  and  the  string  of  islands 
was  a  continuous  mountain  chain,  connecting 
the  two  Americas,  studded  with  volcanoes  vomit- 
ing flame,  smoke,  and  ashes,  and  of  height  beyond 
the  power  of  imagination.  Even  to-day,  countless 
West  Indian  mountains  tower  a  mile  or  more  into 
the  air,  and  Loma  Tina,  in  Santo  Domingo,  lifts 
its  cloud-wreathed  head  eleven  thousand  feet 
above  the  sea.  And  yet  these  would  be  but  in- 
significant hillocks  compared  to  the  serried  crest 
of  the  prehistoric  borderland  of  the  Caribbean, 
ere  some  awful  cataclysm  of  the  past  lowered 


6  THE  WEST  INDIES 

that  array  of  sky-piercing  volcanoes  and  allowed 
the  sea  to  flow  above  the  submerged  land  to  form 
the  West  Indies.  Many  of  the  islands  rise  four 
miles  from  the  sea  floor;  off  the  northern  coast  of 
Porto  Rico  are  depths  of  27,000  feet  and  more, 
and,  if  the  ocean  should  be  swept  back  or  the  sea 
dried  away,  the  Bahamas  and  Cuba  would  ap- 
pear as  a  terrific,  precipitous  plateau  20,000  feet 
in  height  and  stretching  for  over  700  miles,  its 
sheer  face  cut  and  seamed  by  awful  rifts,  in  which 
the  Grand  Canyon  might  be  hidden,  and  sweep- 
ing southward  for  200  miles  to  where  the  Sierra 
Maestra  would  tower  to  the  dizzying  height  of 
28,000  feet. 

But,  perchance  these  submerged  mountains, 
these  titanic  precipices,  and  these  vast,  coral- 
covered  plains,  now  miles  beneath  the  sea,  have 
never  seen  the  light  of  day,  for  there  are  those 
who  claim  that  the  islands  have  been  separated 
since  the  world  began,  that  they  are  merely  iso- 
lated volcanic  cones,  pushed  up  from  the  ocean's 
bed  to  belch  forth  molten,  incandescent  material, 
which,  through  countless  ages,  has  decomposed 
to  form  the  rich  and  fertile  lands  now  luxuriant 
with  vegetation  and  pleasant  for  man  to  dwell 
upon.  Which  theory  is  right  we  may  never 
know,  but  it  is  certain  that  all  of  the  West  Indies 
are  not  volcanoes.  The  Greater  Antilles — Cuba, 
Jamaica,  Santo  Domingo,  and  Porto  Rico — are  as 


PROLOGUE  7 

ancient  in  formation  as  our  own  granite  hills  and 
are  continental  in  fauna  and  flora,  while  Tobago, 
Trinidad,  Curacao,  and  the  Coast  Islands  are 
merely  detached  bits  of  South  America  separated 
from  the  mainland  in  the  dim  forgotten  ages  of 
the  past.  Still  others  of  these  isles,  such  as  the 
Bahamas,  St.  Croix,  Barbados,  and  others,  are 
of  limestone — "coral  islands"  so-called.  But  in 
reality  they  are  not  coral  at  all  in  the  true  sense 
of  the  term,  for  they  are  merely  masses  of  wind- 
drifted  shore  sand, — composed  of  wave-worn, 
broken  shells  and  fragments  of  coral, — wThich, 
through  the  centuries,  have  become  firmly  ce- 
mented together  by  the  percolating  rains.  Firm 
and  solid  as  granite,  fine  as  marble,  are  the  rocks 
and  cliffs  of  these  islands,  and  it  is  difficult  to 
believe  that  they  are  simply  hardened  sand  hills, 
but  if  he  who  doubts  examines  a  section  of  the 
rock  beneath  a  microscope,  he  will  find  the  bits 
of  shells  and  coral  still  intact  and  embedded  in 
the  crystalized  lime  deposited  around  them  by 
the  evaporating  water. 

The  present  is  of  more  interest  than  the  past, 
however,  and  whatever  the  origin  of  the  islands, 
whether  partly  sunken  continent,  protruding, 
isolated  peaks,  or  petrified  sand  dunes,  they  are 
all  wonderfully  beautiful,  riotous  in  color,  mar- 
velous in  scenery,  and  veritable  Edens  of  tropic 
loveliness,  luxuriant  vegetation,  and  balmy  air. 


8  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Here  nature  flaunts  every  tint  and  shade  in  lavish 
abandon;  here  sun  and  cloud  vie  with  each  other 
to  produce  magical  effects  of  light  and  shade ;  here 
the  unsullied  air  glows  luminous  as  though  filled 
with  floating  gold  dust,  and  sky  and  sea  seem  as 
of  another  world  than  ours.  Glorious  as  are  the 
days  in  these  lotus-eating,  dreamland  isles  of 
perpetual  summer,  even  more  enchanting  are  the 
nights.  Above,  arches  the  velvet  sky,  sprinkled 
with  myriads  of  scintillating,  twinkling  stars,  like 
the  riding  lights  of  fairy  ships  afloat  upon  a  purple 
sea.  Luminously  black  is  the  air,  sweet  with  the 
sensuous  odor  of  jasmine,  orange  flower,  and  gar- 
denia, and,  borne  on  the  balmy,  caressing  breeze, 
is  the  soft  swash  of  gently  lapping  waves,  the 
sleepy  tinkle  of  fountains,  the  querulous  cry  of 
night-birds,  the  distant  sound  of  laughter  and  song, 
and  the  languorous  music  of  guitars.  From  the 
mysterious  shadows  of  the  mountains  comes  the 
weird  boom  of  a  tom-tom,  filling  the  world  with 
dull  reverberations  like  the  staccato  beats  of 
a  gigantic  pulse.  Against  the  inky  background 
of  trees  and  shrubbery  gleam  countless  fireflies, 
flitting  aimlessly,  erratically,— like  tiny  stars 
gone  astray  and  seeking  to  find  their  way  to  the 
vault  of  heaven  from  which  they  fell.  Above  the 
dim  horizon  blazes  the  Southern  Cross  and,  over 
all— calm,  serene— like  a  mellow,  golden  globe, 
floats  the  great  tropic  moon,  outlining  each  rus- 


PROLOGUE  9 

tling  leaf,  each  swaying  bough  with  a  tracery  of 
silver,  transforming  the  housetops  to  sheets  of 
burnished  metal,  filling  the  scented  air  with 
effulgent  light,  and  silhouetting  the  nodding  palms 
that  stand,  like  plumed  sentinels,  above  a  wave- 
washed  beach  of  diamond  dust. 


CHAPTER  I 

BERMUDA 

HUNDREDS  of  miles  from  any  coast,  surrounded 
on  every  side  by  the  restless  surges  of  the  great 
Atlantic — a  mere  speck  in  a  waste  of  sea — lies 
Bermuda.  While  not  strictly  one  of  the  West 
Indies,  yet  its  fauna  and  flora,  its  products  and 
its  formation,  are  so  similar  to  many  of  the  Antilles 
that  we  may  well  consider  it  as  a  West  Indian 
island  gone  astray,  and  set  down, — or  rather 
pushed  up, — a  thousand  miles  and  more  from  its 
fellows. 

If  the  ship  arrives  at  Bermuda  by  daylight 
there  is  ample  opportunity  for  the  visitor  to  view 
the  islands,  as  the  vessel  steams  slowly  along  the 
northern  shores  and  threads  her  way  through 
the  tortuous  channel  between  sharp-fanged  reefs 
towards  Hamilton. 

And  vastly  disappointing  is  this  first  impression 
of  the  Bermudas.  You  have  looked  for  a  bit  of 
Eden, — a  palm-fringed  isle  such  as  those  pictured 
atolls  in  the  geographies  perhaps, — and,  instead, 
you  gaze  upon  a  low-lying  waste  of  white,  topped 


BERMUDA  ii 

and  broken  by  stunted,  dull-green  cedars;  a  land- 
scape as  bleak  and  sterile  as  the  granite-ribbed 
sheep  pastures  of  New  England. 

Here  and  there  glaring  white  buildings  stand 
sharply  forth  against  the  monotony  of  the  cedars, 
gradually  the  foliage  increases  and  loses  some  of 
its  dull,  half-dead  appearance,  and  when,  at  last, 
the  steamer  passes  between  the  verdured  islets 
in  Hamilton  Harbor  and  nears  the  docks,  much 
of  the  hills  and  vales  is  well-clothed  in  greenery. 

But  with  all  its  charms,  and  they  are  many, 
Bermuda  is  far  from  truly  tropical  and  if  you  seek 
the  luxuriant  vegetation,  the  gorgeous  coloring, 
the  balmy,  voluptuous  air,  and  the  sights  and 
scenes  of  tropic  lands,  Bermuda  will  prove  far 
from  your  ideal.  You  must  travel  farther,  to 
the  Caribbean  isles,  to  find  such  sights  and  scenes, 
for  the  natural  vegetation  of  Bermuda  is  not  rank 
and  colorful,  the  life  and  customs  are  similar  to 
our  own,  and  only  where  introduced  by  man  are 
there  palms,  flowers,  and  fruits  typical  of  the  real 
tropics.  And  this  is  not  surprising,  for  Bermuda 
is  far  north  of  the  tropics — the  farthest  north  of 
any  spot  where  tropical  life  and  plants  exist  in  a 
natural  state — and  its  semi-tropical  climate,  where 
snow  and  frost  are  unknown,  is  due  to  its  location 
in  the  Gulf  Stream  beyond  the  reach  of  wintry 
winds  and  Arctic  Current. 

We  speak  of  Bermuda  as  of  a  single  island,  but, 


12  THE  WEST  INDIES 

in  reality,  it  is  a  group,  or  cluster,  of  more  than 
one  hundred  islets, — a  bare  half-dozen  of  which 
are  worthy  of  the  name, — and  which  are  so  con- 
nected by  bridges,  causeways,  and  roads  as  to 
form,  to  all  intents  and  purposes,  a  single  island, 
the  whole  scarce  twenty-five  miles  long,  less  than 
three  miles  wide,  and  with  its  loftiest  hill  rising 
a  scant  three  hundred  feet  above  the  sea. 

But  what  Bermuda  lacks  in  size  and  grandeur 
is  made  up  for  in  attractions,  and  to  visit  this 
sea-girt,  mid-ocean  isle  is  to  love  it,  for  it  possesses 
a  charm  and  fascination  all  its  own. 

In  form  the  Bermudas  are  commonly  likened 
to  a  fish-hook,  but  one  facetious  visitor  noted 
their  resemblance  to  an  outstretched  hand,  with 
expectant  open  palm  and  crooked  fingers,  wait- 
ing for  American  dollars;  a  happy  similitude  so 
symbolic  of  Bermuda's  greatest  revenue  that  it 
cannot  pass  unnoted. 

A  dozen  years  ago  Bermuda  was  scarcely  known 
to  Americans  at  large,  and  only  the  fortunate  few 
who  had  learned  the  secrets  of  its  charms  visited 
its  shores.  But  once  the  islands  were  discovered 
by  the  American  public  its  rise  to  popularity  and 
fame  was  swift,  and  to-day  it  is  thronged  with 
thousands  of  visitors;  palatial  hotels  and  innumer- 
able boarding-houses  are  crowded  throughout  the 
winter  seasons  and  into  Bermudian  pockets  flows 
a  steady  stream  of  American  gold. 


BERMUDA  13 

And  speaking  of  "discovering"  Bermuda  it 
may  be  of  interest  to  note  that  the  islands  were 
repeatedly  discovered,  and  usually  by  accident, 
which  is  scarcely  to  be  wondered  at  when  we  con- 
sider what  a  mere  speck  they  form  in  the  waste 
of  waters  of  the  North  Atlantic;  the  wonder  is 
that  they  were  ever  discovered  at  all.  There  is 
some  doubt  as  to  the  actual  and  original  discoverer 
of  these  islands,  but  it  is  usually  conceded  that 
one  Juan  Bermudez  was  the  first  European  to 
land  upon  them,  in  1515,  and  it  was  in  his  honor 
that  they  received  their  best-known  name.  But 
to  Bermudez  and  his  Spaniards  the  islands  were 
of  little  moment,  and,  a  gale  arising,  the  Dons 
sailed  away,  glad  to  escape  in  safety  from  the 
reef-filled,  treacherous  spot.  Twenty-eight  years 
later  a  Portuguese,  Ferdinand  Camelo,  touched 
at  the  Bermudas  or  "Isles  of  Devils"  as  they  were 
then  called,  and  after  carving  his  initials  upon  the 
famous  "Spanish  Rock"  and  leaving  a  few  hogs 
upon  the  islands,  he  followed  the  example  of  his 
predecessors  and  sailed  off  to  more  promising 
lands.  For  half  a  century  the  isles  were  left  to 
themselves,  until  in  1593,  a  pirate  vessel,  home- 
ward bound  from  the  Indies,  was  wrecked  upon 
isolated  North  Rock.  A  number  of  the  crew 
reached  the  shore  in  safety,  among  them  an 
English  mariner,  Henry  May,  and  to  him  we  owe 
the  little  we  know  of  the  islands  at  that  time. 


I4  THE  WEST  INDIES 

May  and  his  comrades  lived  in  Bermuda  for 
five  months,  subsisting  upon  the  descendants  of 
Camelo's  hogs  and  wild  berries,  until,  having 
constructed  a  shallop  of  Bermudian  cedar,  they 
set  sail  for  Newfoundland  where  they  arrived  in 
due  time. 

But  even  May's  accounts  of  Bermuda  aroused 
no  interest  in  England  and  it  was  left  to  Sir  George 
Somers  to  really  bring  the  islands  to  the  attention 
of  the  world.  Like  the  others,  Sir  George  dis- 
covered Bermuda  by  accident,  for  while  en  route 
to  Jamestown,  Virginia,  his  ship  was  disabled  in  a 
storm,  and,  being  on  the  point  of  foundering,  was 
run  ashore  on  Bermuda  in  the  hope  of  saving  the 
lives  of  those  on  board.  In  this  they  were  success- 
ful and  from  July,  1609,  until  the  following  May, 
Somers  and  his  companions  lived  on  the  islands 
and  constructed  two  vessels  in  which  they  sailed 
to  Virginia. 

Unlike  those  other  "discoverers"  who  had 
landed  at  Bermuda,  Somers  realized  their  value 
and  his  reports  led  to  the  establishment  of  the 
first  colony  on  the  islands.  He  can  truthfully 
be  called  the  Father  of  Bermuda  and  the  name  of 
"Somers  Islands"  seems  far  more  appropriate 
than  the  more  familiar  name.  He  died  in  Ber- 
muda, while  conducting  an  expedition  for  the 
relief  of  Jamestown,  and  his  heart  lies  buried  in 
the  ancient  cemetery  at  St.  George. 


BERMUDA  15 

Bermuda,  like  many  another  isle,  has  had  a 
turbulent,  a  varied,  and  an  interesting  history  and 
while  space  forbids  a  complete  resume  of  her  past 
there  are  certain  events  of  interest  to  Americans 
which  should  be  noted.  Such  was  the  famous 
gunpowder  plot,  whereby  no  less  a  personage 
than  George  Washington  secured  one  hundred 
barrels  of  powder  from  the  sympathetic  Bermu- 
dians.  It  was  a  most  daring  and  barefaced  deed, 
for  the  powder  destined  to  drive  the  British  from 
Boston,  was  stolen  from  the  British  magazines 
on  the  island  and,  to  add  insult  to  injury,  the 
barrels  actually  were  rolled  through  the  Governor's 
grounds! 

Again,  during  our  Civil  War,  the  Bermudians 
entered  prominently  into  the  limelight  of  our 
land,  for  here  foregathered  the  reckless  blockade 
runners  and  the  sleepy,  mid-ocean  isles  awoke  to 
the  golden  opportunity  afforded  by  the  struggle 
between  North  and  South.  The  long-deserted 
harbors  of  Hamilton  and  St.  George  became 
once  more  alive  with  ships,  a  forest  of  masts  rose 
above  the  docks  and  warehouses,  and  wealth, 
such  as  had  not  been  known  since  the  old  days  of 
pirates  and  buccaneers,  filled  Bermudian  coffers. 
But  such  prosperity  was  but  fleeting,  and  not 
until  the  Bermudians  started  raising  early  vege- 
tables and  Easter  lilies  for  the  Northern  markets 
did  the  islands  really  come  into  their  own.  These, 


16  THE  WEST  INDIES 

with  the  tourists,  are  Bermuda's  mainstay  and 
reliance  and,  of  the  two,  the  tourists  are  doubtless 
the  most  profitable.  Of  all  the  attractions  of 
which  Bermuda  can  boast,  perhaps  the  greatest 
is  the  climate,  for  it  is  wonderfully  equable,  sel- 
dom falling  below  60°  or  rising  above  80°,  even 
in  midsummer.  But  it  is  not  favorable  to  those 
affected  with  asthma,  tuberculosis,  or  pulmonary 
or  throat  troubles,  or  to  those  suffering  from  rheu- 
matism, for  it  is  wonderfully  damp  and  at  times 
chilly  and  as  no  provision  is  made  for  artificially 
heating  the  majority  of  dwellings  one  may  suffer 
abominably  from  cold  during  a  period  of  rainy 
stormy  weather, — and  there  is  a  superabundance 
of  such.  Moreover,  the  houses  are  built  of  porous 
limestone,  which  absorbs  moisture  like  a  sponge, 
and  when  the  rain  is  over  and  the  sun  comes 
forth  the  dampness  is  driven  inward  and  the  rooms 
become  tomb-like  in  their  clammy  chill,  and 
everything  mildews  and  molds.  A  small  oil 
or  alcohol  heater  will  readily  overcome  this,  how- 
ever, and  there  is  no  reason  for  any  one  being  un- 
comfortable, if  prepared  for  the  climate  in  advance. 
Moreover,  life  in  Bermuda  is  primarily  and 
preferably  an  out-of-doors  existence,  and  a  little 
discomfort  at  times  is  as  nothing  compared  to  the 
pleasures  and  enjoyments  one  finds  at  every  turn. 
There  are  miles  of  magnificent  beaches  of  creamy 
coral  sand,  some  bordering  sheltered  coves  and 


BERMUDA  17 

bays,  others  ceaselessly  pounded  by  great  foam- 
crested  ocean  rollers.  There  are  countless  islet 
gems  studding  land-locked  lagoons  and  inviting 
one  to  row,  fish,  or  sail.  There  are  marvelous 
caverns  filled  with  pendant  stalactites  and  with 
many  a  subterranean  pool  whereon  one  may 
navigate  far  under  ground.  There  are  a  hundred 
miles  and  more  of  perfect  roads  leading  to  every 
part  of  the  islands.  There  are  golf  links,  tennis 
courts,  and  race  courses.  Even  those  fond  of 
society  are  provided  for  and  there  is  no  end  of 
balls,  dances,  receptions,  teas,  and  other  social 
entertainments. 

There  are  but  two  real  towns  in  Bermuda;  the 
one,  Hamilton,  near  the  center  of  the  islands;  the 
other,  St.  George,  at  the  extreme  northeastern 
end,  but  throughout  the  Bermudas  are  little 
villages  and  residences;  hotels  and  native  huts 
are  scattered  here,  there,  and  everywhere,  so  that 
there  seems  one  continuous  settlement.  Hamilton, 
the  capital,  is  a  large,  busy,  modern  town  wherein 
are  the  principal  stores,  the  largest  hotels,  and  the 
Government  offices,  and  most  of  the  steamers 
make  Hamilton  their  port  of  call.  St.  George 
is  as  different  as  though  in  another  land.  It  is 
hilly,  old-fashioned,  quaint,  with  narrow,  walled 
lanes  and  alleys,  ancient  buildings,  and  a  sleepy, 
old-world  atmosphere  which  is  most  fascinating. 
With  all  its  charms  it  is  unfortunately  in  the  most 


i8  THE  WEST  INDIES 

barren  district  of  the  island.  While  all  parts  of 
Bermuda  are  within  easy  reach  of  either  town 
it  is  far  wiser  to  select  a  residence  in  the  outlying 
districts  rather  than  to  live  in  Hamilton  or  St. 
George. 

Wherever  one  goes  in  Bermuda  there  is  vivid 
color  and  intense  light,  too  intense  and  vivid  if 
anything,  for  the  roads  are  white,  the  stone  build- 
ings are  whitewashed,  the  rocks,  the  reefs,  the 
sand, — everything  save  the  crystalline  waters, 
the  verdure,  and  the  colored  folk  are  white,  and 
from  every  side  the  sunlight  is  reflected  in  a 
dazzling,  blinding  glare  that  makes  blue  or  amber 
goggles  a  necessity. 

But  the  very  whiteness  and  glare  serve  to 
accentuate  the  cool  and  restful  greenery  of  the 
vegetation  and  the  marvelous  colors  of  the  sea. 
Perhaps  nowhere  else  in  all  the  world  is  there  such 
gloriously  tinted  water.  Indigo  where  deep,  azure 
and  sapphire  nearer  shore,  opalescent  turquoise 
in  the  shallows,  and  marbled  with  royal  purple 
and  amethyst  where  reefs  and  corals  dot  the  white 
sand  of  its  bed,  the  sea  that  laps  Bermuda's 
shores  is  an  ever-changing,  ever-fascinating  mar- 
vel; a  thing  of  wondrous  beauty  impossible  to 
describe  in  words  or  to  reproduce  in  pigments. 

No  less  wonderful,  no  less  colorful,  than  the 
water  itself,  is  the  bottom  of  the  sea  which  lies 
revealed  to  wondering  eyes  through  many  feet 


BERMUDA  19 

of  the  crystalline  liquid.  Floating  upon  the  sur- 
face of  the  sheltered  bays  and  lagoons  one  seems 
suspended  in  midair,  so  glass-like  in  its  trans- 
parency is  this  mid-ocean  water,  and,  gazing  into 
the  depths  one  looks  upon  a  new  strange  world. 
Here  are  broad  patches  of  smooth-swept  sand, 
tinted  to  delicate  malachite-green  by  the  inter- 
vening water,  and,  sharply  outlined  upon  it,  great 
uncouth  sea-puddings  move  slowly  about,  like 
some  strange  submarine  pachyderms  browsing 
on  pale-green  pastures,  while  opalescent  hued 
fishes  dart  and  flit  about  like  dainty,  swift -winged 
birds.  Here  and  there,  great  masses  of  submerged 
rocks  rise  upward  from  the  sandy  floor,  but  such 
rocks!  Surely  nowhere  outside  of  fairyland  were 
ever  such  forms  and  colors  seen.  Everywhere 
marine  life  teems  and  each  rock  and  reef  is  covered 
with  myriads  of  living  corals, — emerald,  orange, 
ochre,  brown,  and  lavender;  broad  purple  sea- 
fans  wave  gently  to  the  current;  slender  sea-rods 
and  inky-black  gorgonias  rise  like  gaunt  trees 
from  the  mysterious,  shadowy  crevices;  gigantic 
sea-anemones  spread  their  olive  and  magenta 
tentacles  like  gorgeous  flowers;  sponges,  brilliant 
scarlet  and  vermilion  in  hue,  form  masses  of  vivid 
color,  while  back  and  forth  among  them  move 
rainbow-tinted  fishes,  great  peacock-colored  lob- 
sters, and  grotesque  crabs,  or,  sprawling  across 
the  patchwork  of  colors,  one  sees  an  octopus,  its 


20  THE  WEST  INDIES 

pulpy  body  and  eight  squirming  arms  gay  with 
ever  changing,  chameleon-like  hues. 

Even  such  wonders  pall,  however,  and  when  tired 
of  these  sights,  or  when  the  winds  ruffle  the  sur- 
face of  bay  and  lagoon  and  hide  the  world  beneath, 
there  are  the  highways  and  byways  of  the  land 
where  one  may  drive,  cycle,  or  walk  for  days  and 
ever  find  new  sights  and  new  scenes  of  beauty  and 
interest. 

From  Hamilton  eastward  to  St.  George  there 
are  three  highways  known  as  the  North,  Middle, 
and  South  Roads.  All  are  good,  all  offer  innu- 
merable attractions,  and  each  is  distinct  and 
different  from  the  others,  and  as  all  converge  and 
join  at  the  Flatts  one  may  go  forth  by  one  route 
and  return  by  another. 

The  North  Road  leads  past  Victoria  Park  and 
through  shady  Cedar  Avenue  and,  as  its  name 
implies,  follows  the  northern  contour  of  Hamilton 
Island.  Soon  after  leaving  the  city  Woodlands 
is  reached,  with  its  waving  cocoa  palms  giving  a 
tropical  touch  to  the  scene.  Just  beyond  are 
quaint  old  Pembroke  Church  and  beautiful  Mount 
Langdon,  where  is  Government  House.  Then 
the  roadway  approaches  the  shore,  and,  turning 
to  the  right,  passes  an  overhanging  rock  known 
as  the  "Ducking  Stool"  where,  in  early  days, 
scolds  and  gossips  were  dipped  in  the  sea  to  still 
their  wagging  tongues, 


CATHEDRAL    ROCKS,    BERMUDA 


NATURAL   ARCH.    BERMUDA 


BERMUDA  21 

Thence,  following  the  coast,  the  highway  sweeps 
on,  bordered  on  the  water  side  by  pink-flowered, 
heath-like  tamarisks,  on  the  other  by  cedars, 
shrubbery,  and  green  hills,  and  ever  with  the 
lovely,  brilliant-colored  waters  gleaming  in  the 
sun  and  washing  beach-lined  coves  and  rock- 
walled  inlets.  Now,  passing  through  deep  cuts 
in  the  solid  rock,  now  topping  low  hills,  anon 
swinging  close  to  the  water's  edge,  the  way  con- 
tinues; every  turn,  each  view  affording  new  and 
more  charming  views.  But  if  you  would  enjoy 
this  North  Road  by  all  means  select  a  pleasant 
day,  for  when  the  wind  is  strong  from  the  west 
the  spray  flies  across  the  road  and  one  is  likely 
to  be  both  cold  and  wet. 

At  Flatts  Village  Harrington  Sound  lies  spread 
among  its  bold  verdured  shores  and  dotted  with 
its  picturesque  wooded  islets.  Across  the  narrow 
inlet  is  a  bridge  and  here  the  road  may  be  followed 
to  Bailey's  Bay  by  the  north  shore  to  St.  George, 
or,  by  turning  to  the  right,  the  Sound  may  be 
circled,  and  the  main  road  again  reached.  Either 
way  is  delightful,  but  of  the  two  perhaps  the  latter 
is  the  more  interesting.  Near  at  hand,  close  to 
the  water's  edge,  is  a  strangely  formed  mass  of 
stone  known  as  "Lion  Rock"  and  a  short  distance 
farther  on  is  the  famous  "Devil's  Hole."  No 
visit  to  Bermuda  would  be  complete  without 
seeing  this  large,  water- filled  grotto,  containing 


22  THE  WEST  INDIES 

thousands  of  multi-colored  fish  which  crowd  to 
the  edge  of  the  pool  to  receive  their  customary 
donation  of  food  from  the  stranger. 

Beyond  the  Devil's  Hole  the  highway  climbs 
over  cedar-clad  hills  to  Shark's  Hole  and  Paynter's 
Vale.  Once  a  splendid  estate,  with  a  spacious 
mansion  house,  Paynter's  Vale  has  now  fallen 
into  neglect,  but  it  still  remains  one  of  the  islands' 
beauty  spots  where  many  rare  and  unusual  forms 
of  vegetation  thrive  in  luxuriant  profusion  and 
form  a  miniature  forest.  All  along  this  road  is 
a  wealth  of  vegetation.  Dense  thickets,  gaudy 
with  convolvulus  and  lantana;  heavy  woods  where 
lofty  cedars  bend  under  their  curtain-like  drapery 
of  odorous  wild  jasmine,  and  patches  of  banner- 
leaved  bananas  alternate  with  cultivated  fields 
redolent  of  onions  or  snowy  with  Easter  lilies. 
Altogether  it  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  and 
attractive  spots  in  Bermuda,  for  Harrington  Sound 
and  Castle  Harbor  are  scarcely  a  stone's  throw 
apart;  separated  only  by  this  narrow  wooded 
ridge,  the  views  are  magnificent  and  there  are 
many  great  caves  and  historic  landmarks  in  the 
immediate  vicinity. 

Close  at  hand  lies  Walsingham,  famous  as  the 
one-time  residence  of  Thomas  Moore.  Despite 
tradition  the  Bard  of  Erin  never  dwelt  in  the 
ancient  house  half-hidden  amidst  the  trees  and 
shrubbery  of  the  ample  grounds,  but  it  loses  none 


BERMUDA  23 

of  its  interest  thereby,  for  he  often  visited  Walsing- 
ham,  many  of  his  verses  were  written  there,  and 
the  calabash  tree,  immortalized  in  his  poems, 
still  stands  in  his  secluded  shady  glade. 

Beyond  Walsingham  the  main  road  is  reached 
and  one  comes  to  the  immense  causeway  which 
bridges  the  inlet  to  Castle  Harbor  and  connects 
Hamilton  Island  with  St.  George. 

The  causeway, — completed  in  1871  at  a  cost 
of  nearly  $150,000, — was  demolished  in  a  single 
night,  when  the  islands  were  swept  by  a  hurricane 
on  September  12,  1899.  As  originally  constructed, 
it  was  of  stone  and  masonry,  but  it  was  rebuilt 
largely  of  timber.  It  is  nearly  a  mile  and  a  half 
from  end  to  end,  but  this  includes  Long  Bird 
Island  which  forms  a  considerable  portion  of  the 
entire  length. 

From  the  causeway  there  is  a  most  charming 
view  of  Castle  Harbor,  on  the  south,  its  marvel- 
ously  blue  waters  stretching  seaward  to  the  out- 
lying islands  with  the  Atlantic  surges  churned 
to  foam  about  their  frowning,  wave-worn  cliffs. 
They  are  wild,  deserted  spots  to-day,  their  sum- 
mits crowned  with  ancient,  crumbling  forts  and 
battlements.  Once  peopled  with  red-coated  sol- 
diery and  bristling  with  cannon  commanding  the 
entrance  to  the  harbor,  they  are  now  forsaken, 
the  empty  casements  overgrown  with  brush  and 
creepers,  the  gun  platforms  and  magazines  the 


24  THE  WEST  INDIES 

haunt  of  basking  lizards  and  scuttling  land-crabs, 
while  in  the  rock-hewn  dungeons  and  embrasures 
long-tailed  tropic  birds  raise  their  young  in  peace. 

To  the  north  is  an  equally  lovely  vista, — a  tran- 
quil, caerulean  lagoon,  its  narrow  seaward  opening 
all  but  barred  by  little  islets  and  stretching  east- 
ward to  the  drawbridge  which  spans  the  entrance 
to  St.  George's  inner  harbor. 

Crossing  this  bridge  St.  George  Island  is  reached, 
and  while  this  island  is  barren  and  yuccas,  cacti, 
and  giant  agaves  grow  thickly  along  the  roadside, 
yet  the  view  of  the  land-locked  harbor,  St.  David 
and  the  lesser  islands,  and  the  shipping  mirrored 
on  the  glassy  water,  fully  compensates  for  the 
lack  of  beauties  on  the  land. 

In  the  quaint  old-world  town  one  can  find  much 
of  interest.  The  St.  George  Hotel,  facing  the 
open  plaza-like  square  and  built  two  hundred  years 
ago,  is  one  of  the  oldest  buildings  in  Bermuda, 
and  its  massive  cedar  beams, — over  fifteen  inches 
square, — testify  to  the  size  of  the  trees  which  once 
covered  this  portion  of  the  islands  with  a  veritable 
forest.  But  everything  in  St.  George  is  old, 
or  appears  so,  for  this  was  the  first  settlement, 
— founded  in  1612 — and  for  two  centuries  it  was 
the  capital,  and  it  has  changed  but  little  in  the 
past  three  hundred  years. 

Wonderfully  narrow  crooked  lanes  climb  up 
and  down  hill  between  the  high  stone  walls  and 


BERMUDA  25 

buildings, — many  scarce  wide  enough  to  permit 
a  carriage  to  pass  through, — for  St.  George's 
streets  were  made  ere  wheeled  vehicles  were  known 
in  Bermuda,  and  under  the  old  laws  a  twelve- 
foot  thoroughfare  was  considered  amply  broad. 

The  town  boasts  a  charming  public  garden 
and  here,  beneath  an  inscribed  tablet,  the  heart 
of  St.  George  Somers  still  rests,  and,  in  the  shady 
old  churchyard  and  the  crypt,  lies  many  a  famed 
personage  of  days  gone  by. 

A  walk  or  drive  up  the  winding,  hilly  road  to 
old  Fort  St.  George,  is  well  rewarded  by  the 
extensive  view  obtained,  for,  from  the  heights, 
the  sea,  the  harbor,  the  outlying  islands,  and  the 
main  islands  are  clearly  visible  for  miles — spread 
like  a  multicolored  map  beneath  one's  feet.  It 
was  this  beautiful  vista  which  so  charmed  Thomas 
Moore  and,  viewing  it  to-day,  one  cannot  wonder 
that  he  perpetuated  it  in  his  poems. 

On  the  return  to  Hamilton  'tis  well  to  turn 
aside  near  Devil's  Hole  and  take  the  road  to 
Tucker's  Town,  a  tiny  village  near  the  southern 
shore  of  Castle  Harbor  and  of  interest  because 
of  the  Natural  Arch  which  spans  a  stretch  of  ocean 
beach  near  by.  Here,  on  the  southern  coast, 
one  also  may  see  the  "boilers,"  miniature  atolls 
projecting  above  the  surface  of  the  sea  and  on 
which  the  long  rollers  constantly  break  in  mighty 
cataracts  of  boiling  foam,  hence  the  native  name. 


26  THE  WEST  INDIES 

And,  speaking  of  these  atolls,  it  may  be  well  to 
state  that  Bermuda  is  not  a  true  "coral  island"  as 
many  people  suppose. 

From  beating  surf  to  wind-swept  hilltops  the 
Bermudas  are  composed  of  drifted  shore  sand 
which  consists  entirely  of  broken  sea-shells  and 
a  few  fragments  of  coral.  Although  in  many 
places  the  sand  has  been  solidified  to  the  hardness 
and  fineness  of  marble,  yet  the  transition  may 
readily  be  traced,  step  by  step,  from  the  loose 
sand  of  the  dunes  to  the  hardest  building  stone, 
for  in  many  places  the  layers  of  sand  and  rock 
grade  one  into  the  other  and  it  is  difficult  to  say 
where  one  begins  and  the  other  ends.  It  is  a 
simple  process  of  nature,  for  the  sand,  packed 
tightly  by  the  wind,  becomes  saturated  with  rain, 
the  carbon  dioxide  in  the  water  dissolves  a  portion 
of  the  lime,  and  this,  in  turn,  hardens  and  cements 
the  separate  grains  of  sand  into  a  compact  mass. 
It  is  the  same  lime  in  solution  which  causes  the 
beautiful  stalactites  and  dripstone  formations  in 
the  caves  and  in  many  of  these  the  process  may 
actually  be  watched  as,  drop  by  drop,  the  water 
oozes  from  the  rock  and  leaves  a  tiny  deposit  of 
lime  to  mark  its  passage.  Often,  in  the  hardest 
stone,  may  be  found  strata  or  accumulations  of 
loose  sand  which,  for  some  unknown  cause,  has 
remained  unaffected  by  the  percolating  water, 
and  when  these  are  exposed  to  the  elements  and 


SHARK'S    HOLE.    BERMUDA 


BERMUDA  27 

the  loose  sand  washed  or  blown  away,  caves  or 
caverns  remain.  Then,  when  through  countless 
ages,  the  softer  rock  is  worn  away  and  only  the 
harder  dripstone  remains,  such  picturesque  for- 
mations as  the  Natural  Arch  and  Cathedral  Rocks 
result;  or,  if  the  roofs  fall  in,  grottos  such  as  the 
Devil's  Hole  are  produced.  Indeed  Harrington 
Sound  itself  is  supposed  to  be  but  a  stupendous, 
water-filled  cave  whose  roof,  in  prehistoric  times, 
collapsed. 

Another  peculiarity  of  the  Bermuda  rock  is 
that  when  first  cut  or  quarried  it  is  very  soft  but 
upon  exposure  to  the  air  it  hardens  rapidly  until 
like  granite.  Often  one  may  see  colored  men 
cutting  the  chalky  white  stone  into  neat  square 
blocks  by  means  of  hand-saws  and  chisels,  and,  as 
the  houses  are  built  of  stone  obtained  on  the  spot, 
the  builders  kill  two  birds  with  one  stone,  the 
cavity  left  by  quarrying  serving  for  a  cellar  to 
the  building  erected  with  the  stone  taken  from  it ; 
a  most  economical  method  of  construction. 

In  the  center  of  the  islands,  sheltered  from  the 
wind  and  spray  by  the  surrounding  hills  and 
cedars,  the  vegetation  is  far  more  luxuriant  and 
attractive  than  near  the  coast,  and  to  drive  over 
the  Middle  Road  will  at  once  dispel  one's  first 
impressions  of  the  island's  barrenness.  Here,  for 
miles,  the  highways  are  bordered  by  close-set 
hedges  of  oleanders,  glorious  with  pink,  white,  and 


28  THE  WEST  INDIES 

red  flowers  in  season.  In  the  grounds  and  gardens 
of  country  homes  grow  nodding  palms,  great  rub- 
ber and  fig  trees,  gorgeous  purple-flowered  pride 
of  India,  fragrant  frangipani  and  golden-yellow 
locust,  while  oranges,  lemons,  papaws,  and  bananas 
rise  above  the  blooming  shrubbery,  and  great 
feathery  bamboos  arch  above  the  smooth  white 
roadway.  Everywhere  in  swales  and  "sinks" 
are  fields  of  rich  red  earth,  enclosed  in  neat  stone 
walls  and  filled  with  potatoes,  onions,  garden 
truck,  or  snowy  white  Easter  lilies.  But  the 
onions  are  more  in  evidence  than  the  lilies  in 
Bermuda  nowadays  and,  as  one  visitor  remarked, 
"You  see  the  lilies  and  smell  onions." 

Even  more  beautiful  are  the  drives  westward 
from  Hamilton.  Not  far  from  the  town  are  the 
famous  "Five  Sisters,"  a  row  of  graceful  royal 
palms,  their  symmetrical  gray-white  trunks  ris- 
ing like  granite  columns  beside  the  road  and 
their  plumed  tops  swaying  in  the  breeze  against 
the  deep  blue  sky.  They  are  regal  trees,  but  mere 
pigmies  compared  to  their  fellows  in  the  Antilles, 
and  are  notable  as  being  the  most  northern  out- 
of-door  specimens  of  their  kind.  Just  beyond  here, 
in  Paget  and  Warwick  parishes,  are  some  of  the 
most  beautiful  drives  and  most  entrancing  scenery 
of  Bermuda,  the  road,  bordered  and  shaded  by 
giant'  bamboos  and  high-wooded  hills,  affording 
magnificent  views;  that  from  Gibb's  Hill  Light 


BERMUDA  29 

being  the  best  and  most  extensive  on  the  islands. 
Here,  as  to  the  east  of  the  capital,  are  three  main 
roads,  but  the  best  is  the  north  road  along  the 
coast  which  presents  a  constant,  ever-changing 
panorama  of  islets,  sea,  and  shore,  with  Hamilton 
gleaming  like  a  snow-drift  against  the  dark  back- 
ground of  its  encircling  hills. 

Following  this  road  one  may  continue  on  to 
Somerset  or  even  to  Ireland  Island  with  its  immense 
dockyard  and  naval  station  and  gigantic  floating 
dry  dock.  But  if  you  visit  this  western  portion 
of  Bermuda  do  not  fail  to  see  the  famed  Cathedral 
Rocks  or  "Old  Church  Rocks1'  on  the  shore  of  the 
"Scaur"  between  Somerset  and  Hamilton  Islands. 
The  remains  of  an  ancient,  partly  destroyed 
cavern,  Cathedral  Rocks  appear  almost  as  if 
carved  by  the  hand  of  man,  and  while  disappoint- 
ing in  their  size — they  are  scarcely  a  score  of 
feet  in  height — yet  they  are  so  remarkable  and 
unique  that  they  are  well  worth  a  visit. 

But  the  same  may  be  said  of  many  another 
spot  in  these  mid-ocean  isles.  There  are  the 
numerous  caverns;  Spanish  Point  with  its  perfect 
beach  strewn  with  bright-hued  sea-shells;  Fairy- 
lands, a  spot  of  unrivaled,  dainty  beauty  most  ap- 
propriately named ;  Prospect  Hill  with  its  parade- 
ground,  bright  with  red-coated  "Tommies"  and 
society  on  Sundays;  Elbow  Bay  where  cedars 
and  deserted  houses  are  being  overwhelmed  by 


THE  WEST  INDIES 


the  irresistible  drifting  sand ;  Hungry  Bay,  with  its 
weird  mangrove  swamp,  its  snowy  white  herons, 
and  its  puzzling  "fossil  palm  trunks";  isolated 
North  Rock  on  which  the  Bonaventura  went  to 
pieces  so  many  years  ago;  Castle  Island  with  its 
ancient  forts;  St.  David's,  Smith,  and  Cooper's 
Islands  once  famous  for  their  whale  fishery  and 
where  a  vast  treasure  is  reputed  to  be  buried; 
Spanish  Rock  with  its  strange,  carved  inscrip- 
tion attributed  to  Ferdinand  Camelo;  Tucker's 
Island  where  the  prisoners  of  the  Boer  War  were 
confined;  the  Biological  Laboratory  on  Agar's 
Island;  the  ancient,  age-gray  churches  and  moss- 
grown  tombstones  with  their  amusing  epitaphs; 
Coney  Island  with  its  land-locked  lagoon  and 
bathing  beach.  All  these  and  many  more  are 
within  easy  reach  and  all  may  be  visited  in  ease 
and  comfort  by  boat  or  carriage  or  on  foot, — surely 
enough,  with  deep-sea  fishing,  boating,  yachting, 
out-door  sports,  and  social  events,  to  justify 
Bermuda's  ever-increasing  popularity. 


CHAPTER  II 

THE  VIRGIN  ISLES 

THE  "Saints  and  Virgins,"  Columbus  called 
them,  as,  sweeping  westward  before  the  trade 
wind,  he  gazed  upon  their  forest-clad  heights 
from  the  deck  of  his  caravel,  in  1493. 

And  through  the  centuries  the  names  he  gave 
them  have  remained  unaltered,  albeit  they  have 
been  tossed  like  shuttlecocks  from  nation  to  na- 
tion, and  have  been  fought  over  by  Spanish, 
French,  Dutch,  and  British,  to  fall,  for  so  many 
years,  to  the  lot  of  Denmark,  whose  white-crossed, 
scarlet  banner  waved  above  St.  Thomas,  St.  John, 
and  Santa  Cruz  from  1666  until  1917. 

Wonderfully  beautiful  appears  St.  Thomas, 
when  first  seen  rising  above  the  sapphire  rim  of 
sea  and  with  the  hazy,  cloud-like  mountain  peaks 
of  Porto  Rico  looming  against  the  western  sky. 

From  palm-fringed  coves  the  green  hills  sweep 
upward  to  cloud-draped  mountain  tops,  and  sandy 
beaches  alternate  with  wave-worn  cliffs  until, 
rounding  a  jutting  headland,  the  perfect  harbor 
of  Charlotte  Amalie  is  reached. 
31 


32  THE  WEST  INDIES 

At  the  head  of  the  bay  the  picturesque  town 
spreads  upward  from  the  water's  edge  upon 
three  steep  hills;  to  the  left  is  the  great  floating 
dock  and  the  huge  coaling  station  of  the  Hamburg- 
American  Line;  to  the  right  are  the  larger  govern- 
ment coal  docks  and  on  every  hand,  save  seaward, 
rise  the  verdured  mountains. 

Long  ere  the  anchor  chains  roar  through  the 
hawse  holes  the  ship  is  surrounded  by  brightly 
painted  boats,  their  negro  crews  clamoring  for 
patronage,  while  naked,  brown  diving  boys  beg 
for  coins  to  be  tossed  overboard  that  they  may 
exhibit  their  wondrous  diving  and  swimming 
powers  for  the  benefit  of  passengers.  And  it  is 
small  wonder  that  the  good-natured,  ragged  crowd 
throngs  about  each  ship  which  enters  the  lovely 
harbor,  and  that  each  man  and  boy  vies  with  his 
fellows  for  the  favor  of  visitors,  for  the  natives 
have  hard  work  to  keep  soul  and  body  together 
in  this  isle.  Never  an  agricultural  island, — for  it 
was  long  ago  deforested,  and  is  too  hilly  for  the 
use  of  modern  farming  methods  and  machinery, 
St.  Thomas  prospered  and  fattened  on  her  com- 
merce. It  was  a  free  port ;  a  safe  and  commodious 
harbor  invited  countless  ships  to  enter  and  trade 
or  refit,  and  the  coaling  stations  and  dry  dock 
brought  a  princely  income  to  Charlotte  Amalie 
and  afforded  an  abundance  of  employment  to  the 
people.  But  with  the  opening  of  the  Panama 


LANDING    PLACE.    ST.    THOMAS 


SUGAR    ESTATE,    ST.    CROIX 


THE  VIRGIN  ISLES  33 

Canal,  the  taking  of  Porto  Rico  by  the  United 
States,  and  the  cessation  of  German  shipping  and 
the  closing  of  the  coaling  station,  due  to  the  Euro- 
pean War,  ill  times  came  to  St.  Thomas.  To-day 
there  is  little  commerce  there,  business  is  almost 
at  a  standstill,  and,  save  for  the  bay  rum  industry, 
an  occasional  vessel  forced  to  refit  or  make  repairs 
through  stress  of  storm,  and  the  microscopical 
local  trade  with  the  neighboring  islands,  there 
is  little  opportunity  for  the  islanders  to  earn  a 
livelihood. 

There  is  not  much  to  be  seen  in  St.  Thomas, 
although  the  spot  has  a  beauty,  a  fascination,  and 
an  atmosphere  which  invariably  appeal  to  visitors. 
There  is  but  one  really  level  street,  which  leads 
east  and  west  near  the  waterfront  and  from  this, 
narrow  side  streets  lead  sharply  up  the  hillsides, 
in  many  places  carried  in  flights  of  steps  up  the 
steeper  slopes. 

Bordering  this  Main  Street  are  the  stores  and 
shops,  where  one  may  purchase  bay  rum,  Panama 
hats,  and  similar  goods  at  very  low  prices;  near  the 
western  end  is  the  market-place,  and  at  the  eastern 
extremity,  close  to  the  landing-place,  is  a  tiny, 
palm-bordered  park  and  a  quaint  old  fort.  This 
pink,  picturesque  fortress  seems  far  more  toy- 
like  than  real  even  now  that  the  Stars  and  Stripes 
are  flying  over  it.  The  names  of  the  streets  are 
the  only  remaining  traces  of  the  former  Danish 


34  THE  WEST  INDIES 

ownership.  Everyone  speaks  English,  many  of 
the  boatmen  and  storekeepers  speak  a  dozen  or 
more  languages,  and  coins  of  currency  of  any 
nation  pass  readily,  for  St.  Thomas  has  dealt  with 
every  race  and  nationality,  her  harbor  has  shel- 
tered ships  flying  the  flags  of  every  maritime 
power,  and  her  people  have  become  cosmopolitan 
in  speech  and  money  matters. 

Among  the  first  "sights"  pointed  out  to  the 
visitor  to  St.  Thomas  is  "Blackbeard's  Castle," 
a  stone  tower  at  the  summit  of  the  central  hill 
on  which  the  town  is  built,  while  on  the  hill  to 
the  right  is  a  similar  structure  known  as  "Blue- 
beard's Tower."  t  It  is  very  doubtful  if  the  no- 
torious pirate,  Teach,  ever  held  sway  in  the 
stronghold  bearing  his  more  popular  name,  and  cer- 
tainly the  casrulean-whiskered  wife-killer  of  child- 
hood's days  never  dwelt  here,  but  the  two  buildings 
crowning  the  town  are  well  worth  a  visit  for  the 
views  obtainable,  and  Bluebeard's  Tower  has  been 
transformed  into  a  delightful  residence  by  the 
American  scientist  who  has  purchased  it.  But 
if  you  would  see  St.  Thomas  at  its  best,  climb  to 
the  lofty  summit  of  "Ma  Falie,"  and  select  early 
morning  or  late  afternoon  for  the  undertaking, 
else  you  will  call  it  "My  Folly,"  as  the  way  is 
steep  and  the  path  none  too  good.  Once  the 
hilltop  is  reached  all  will  be  forgotten,  however, 
for  the  panorama  spread  below  is  marvelously 


THE  VIRGIN  ISLES  35 

beautiful.  At  one's  feet  lies  the  red-roofed  town 
with  its  gardens,  palms,  and  steep  lanes,  looking 
as  if  about  to  slip  into  the  blue  waters  of  the 
tranquil  harbor.  To  the  west,  and  separated 
from  the  harbor  by  a  narrow,  hilly  peninsula, 
is  a  great  harp-shaped  lagoon  of  gleaming  sapphire, 
— once  the  haunt  of  pirate  and  of  buccaneer,  but 
now  deserted  save  by  picnickers  and  bathers — 
while,  stretching  aWay  to  the  shimmering  horizon, 
sparkles  the  Caribbean  with  the  wraith-like  forms 
of  the  other  "Saints"  upon  its  azure  bosom.  To 
the  west,  Porto  Rico  breaks  the  purpling  rim  of 
sea;  far  to  the  southward  hangs  a  faint,  gray 
cloud  that  marks  St.  Croix,  and  eastward — seem- 
ingly close  at  hand — lies  St.  John  with  the  faint 
outlines  of  the  other  "Virgins"  beyond. 

ST.  JOHN 

St.  John,  also  formerly  Danish,  is  of  little  interest 
to  tourists,  and  is  seldom  visited,  but  it  is  a  wildly 
beautiful  isle, — a  rugged,  forest-clothed  spot  with 
scarce  two  thousand  inhabitants  nearly  all  of 
whom  are  blacks.  But  it  is  deserving  of  being 
better  known,  for  there  are  few  more  charming 
islands  in  all  the  Caribbean  and  it  can  boast  of  a 
deep,  safe  harbor — Coral  Bay — which  has  scarcely 
an  equal,  although  few  are  the  seamen  who  have 
ever  seen  it. 

In  former  times  the  island  was  a  famous  haunt 


36  THE  WEST  INDIES 

of  pirates,  and  in  its  forests,  fragrant  with  pimento, 
spice,  and  coffee  trees,  one  may  often  stumble  upon 
the  crumbling  forts  and  rusting  cannon  of  the  old 
sea  rovers  who  once  made  merry  in  this  secluded 
rendezvous. 

To-day  St.  John  is  famous  only  as  the  source 
of  more  than  half  the  bay  rum  of  the  world,  a 
statement  that  may  surprise  many,  for  bay  rum 
and  St.  Thomas  are  almost  synonymous  and  the 
name  of  St.  John  is  never  heard.  But  the  most 
extensive  bay-tree  groves  in  the  Antilles  are  here, 
and  the  bulk  of  the  St.  Thomas  product  is  made 
from  leaves  grown  in  this  forgotten,  out-of-the- 
way  isle. 

ST.   CROIX 

Very  different  from  St.  Thomas  or  St.  John  is 
the  third  of  the  Virgin  Isles — St.  Croix  or  Santa 
Cruz,  the  island  of  the  Holy  Cross — and  which 
is  nearly  fifty  miles  south  of  Charlotte  Amalie. 

When  sailing  along  its  coast,  Santa  Cruz  re- 
minds one  of  nothing  so  much  as  an  island  cut 
from  green  plush,  for,  from  palm-fringed  coral 
beaches  to  loftiest  hilltops,  it  is  one  glorious  mass 
of  green;  but  green  of  a  thousand  shades,  from  the 
pale  and  tender  tint  of  waving  cane  to  the  deepest 
terre-verte  of  bay  trees  and  the  emerald  hue  of 
logwood,  A  land  of  rolling  hills,  rich  valleys,  and 


THE  VIRGIN  ISLES  37 

serene,  park-like  beauty  is  St.  Croix,  and  but  a 
single  glance  is  needed  to  tell  the  visitor  that  here 
sugar  is  king,  for,  over  hills  and  across  valleys, 
stretch  the  vast  cane  fields.  Brown  where  freshly 
planted,  delicate  green  where  bearing,  and  sere 
and  yellow  where  the  harvest  has  been  garnered, 
the  fields  appear  like  a  gigantic  patchwork  quilt 
covering  the  land. 

Here  and  there  the  monument-like  towers  of 
old  windmills  rise  against  the  greenery,  houses 
and  buildings  peep  from  groves  of  palms  and  shade 
trees,  and  gleaming  roads  wind,  like  white  ribbons, 
over  the  hills. 

Before  the  town  of  Frederiksted  the  ship  drops 
anchor  in  a  bay  of  vivid  turquoise  rimmed  by  a 
crescent  of  snowy  sand.  Intensely  tropical  and 
very  foreign-looking  is  the  town,  with  its  low 
buildings  with  massive  arched  doorways,  its 
innumerable  palms,  and  its  vivid  coloring  of  sea, 
sky,  and  verdure. 

But  with  all  its  beauty  Frederiksted  is  of  little 
interest.  The  dazzling  glare  from  its  white  coral 
roads  and  buildings  is  blinding,  it  is  undeniably 
hot  and  the  visitor  to  Santa  Cruz  will  do  well  to 
make  for  the  outlying  country  as  soon  as  he  arrives. 
There  are  numerous  public  carriages  and  many 
automobiles  for  hire;  the  roads  are  magnificent, 
and,  away  from  the  town,  all  is  restful,  cool,  and 
beautiful. 


38  THE  WEST  INDIES 

There  are  the  great  sugar  estates  to  be  visited; 
the  capital,  Christiansted,  on  the  opposite  end  of 
the  island,  is  worth  seeing;  there  are  innumerable 
bathing  beaches  everywhere  along  the  coast; 
gorgeous  flowers,  strange  tropical  trees,  blooming 
vines  and  creepers,  vast  pineapple  fields,  fruit- 
laden  orange  groves,  acres  of  bananas,  and  mile- 
long  avenues  of  stately  royal  palms  greet  the 
visitor  at  every  turn,  while  far  and  near,  stretch 
the  endless  fields  of  cane. 

Wonderfully  happy  and  good-natured  seem  the 
barefooted  colored  folk  one  meets,  albeit  they 
are  but  a  shade  better  off  than  their  St.  Thomas 
neighbors;  wonderfully  pleasant  and  hospitable 
are  the  whites,  and,  as  in  St.  Thomas,  there  is 
scarce  a  trace  of  Danish  ownership.  The  most 
prominent  planters  are  Americans,  the  island's 
trade  is  almost  entirely  with  the  United  States, 
the  inhabitants  are  far  more  familiar  with  New 
York  or  Boston  than  with  Copenhagen,  and  they 
are  far  more  interested  in  American  than  Danish 
news  and  doings. 

Several  times  have  these  Virgin  Isles  sought  to 
come  under  the  Stars  and  Stripes  and  for  innumer- 
able reasons.  To  Denmark  they  were  a  liability, 
to  Uncle  Sam  they  will  prove  an  asset.  At  4  P.M. 
on  the  3ist  of  March,  1917,  Old  Glory  fluttered 
upward  on  the  staffs  which  for  near  three  centuries 
had  flaunted  the  banner  of  Denmark,  and  these 


THE  VIRGIN  ISLES 


39 


beautiful  islands  came  into  their  own.  The  sign- 
ing of  the  Treaty  of  the  Cession  of  the  Islands  was 
proclaimed  in  Washington  on  January  25th.  Com- 
mander E.  T.  Pollock,  U.  S.  N.,  received  the  sov- 
ereignty of  the  islands  as  the  representative  of 
our  country  and  was  named  Governor  pro  tern,  till 
the  arrival  of  Rear  Admiral  J.  H.  Oliver,  U.  S.  N. 
Their  one-time  fame  as  health  resorts  will  return, 
the  harbor  of  St.  Thomas  will  once  more  teem 
with  shipping,  the  fertile  soil  of  Santa  Cruz  will 
add  its  bounty  to  our  wealth,  and  employment 
and  prosperity  will  replace  idleness  and  poverty. 


CHAPTER  III 

ISLANDS   QUITE   OUT  "OF  THE  WORLD 

EASTWARD  from  the  Virgin  Isles, — like  skir- 
mishers thrown  out  to  guard  the  Caribbean  from 
the  fury  of  the  Atlantic, — a  number  of  small 
islands  stand.  Some  are  British  and  some  are 
Dutch,  while  one  is  jointly  owned  by  France  and 
Holland. 

Mere  specks  on  the  map  and  seldom  visited  by 
steamers,  they  are  so  little  known  that  even  their 
names  are  unfamiliar  to  most  people,  although 
many  of  them  are  mountainous,  forest-covered, 
fertile,  and  gem-like  in  their  beauty.  Anegada, 
Virgin  Gorda,  Tortola,  Sombrero,  Anguilla,  with 
many  a  lesser  islet  and  cay,  fly  the  flag  of  England ; 
Saba,  St.  Eustatius,  and  St.  Bartholomew  are 
under  the  banner  of  the  Netherlands,  while  St. 
Martins  flaunts  the  Dutch  colors  from  one  half 
of  its  area  and  the  tricolor  of  France  over  the 
other  half. 

Of  little  importance  to-day,  quite  out  of  the 
world  as  far  as  visitors  and  commerce  are  con- 
cerned, abandoned  for  the  most  part  to  the  blacks ? 
4° 


ISLANDS  QUITE  OUT  OF  THE  WORLD  41 

and  with  no  accommodations  for  strangers,  yet 
time  was  when  these  islands  were  a  power  in 
the  Antilles  and  their  wealth  was  the  envy  of 
kings. 

Here,  in  the  bygone  days  of  piracy,  nocked  the 
wild  sea  rovers  of  the  broad  Spanish  Main,  and  in 
many  a  safe  and  sheltered  harbor  of  the  "Virgins" 
the  "Jolly  Roger"  was  more  familiar  than  the 
banner  of  any  European  nation.  Upon  their 
shores  the  swift,  armed  craft  were  careened, 
repaired,  and  refitted;  in  the  tiny  towns  the  free- 
booters drank,  gambled,  and  caroused  away  their 
ill-gotten  gold,  and  the  islands, — immune  from 
the  raids  of  their  bloodthirsty  guests  for  sake 
of  the  asylum  they  afforded, — waxed  rich  and 
prosperous. 

Countless  millions  in  treasure  have  these  now 
forsaken  islands  seen;  vast  sums  no  doubt  still 
lie  securely  hidden  in  their  forests,  and,  amid 
their  uncharted  reefs  and  unfrequented  waters, 
many  a  corsair  ship  lies  rotting  and  coral  encrusted 
to-day,  for  among  these  islands  many  a  pirate 
craft  was  sent  to  the  bottom,  when  Commodore 
Porter  hounded  the  last  of  the  freebooters  up  and 
down  the  Antilles  and  wiped  piracy  from  the 
Caribbean  forever. 

Privateers  too  found  these  outlying  islands  most 
convenient  for  their  needs,  and  St.  Bartholomew, 
pr  St.  Barts  as  it  is  more  often  called,  became  a 


42  THE  WEST  INDIES 

famous  resort  for  free-lances  of  the  sea  during 
our  Revolutionary  War. 

Then  a  colony  of  Sweden, — under  whose  do- 
minion it  remained  until  1878, — it  was  attacked  by 
Admiral  Rodney  who  sacked  the  port,  Gustavia, 
and  captured  merchandise  worth  over  two  million 
dollars.  To-day  scarce  that  many  cents  could 
be  found  on  the  island,  for  the  good  old  golden 
days  have  passed,  never  to  return,  and  fishing, 
salt-making,  and  a  half-hearted  cultivation  of  the 
soil  are  all  that  serve  to  keep  the  islanders  alive. 

SABA 

Farther  to  the  south  than  the  true  Virgins  and 
lying  midway  between  St.  Croix  and  St.  Kitts, 
are  two  islands  well  worthy  of  more  than  passing 
notice. 

Massive  volcanic  ,' cones,  they  rise  abruptly 
from  the  sea,  the  most  westerly  called  Saba;  the 
other  St.  Eustatius,  or  Statia,  and  both  belonging 
to  the  Dutch. 

;  No  other  spot  in  all  the  world  is  quite  like  Saba; 
of  all  the  islands  it  is  the  strangest,  and  of  them 
all  it  is  in  many  ways  the  most  interesting.  Sheer, 
conical;  forbidding,  and  frowning,  this  island 
rises  from  the  waves;  its  base  in  water  thousands 
of  feet  in  depth;  its  topmost  pinnacle  veiled  in 
drifting  clouds  three  thousand  feet  above  the  sea; 


ISLANDS  QUITE  OUT  OP  THE  WORLD  43 

its  coast  rock-bound  and  precipitous.  Passing 
it  on  the  south  no  one  would  ever  dream  that 
Saba  was  inhabited,  but  when  sailing  past  it  on 
the  east  one  may  glimpse  a  few  houses,  and  a 
church  or  two,  nestling  in  the  greenery  of  the 
heights,  for,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  some  two 
thousand  souls  dwell  on  this  lonely  volcano's 
summit. 

A  thousand  feet  or  more  above  the  beating  surf 
is  the  town,  snugly  hidden  from  passers-by  in 
an  extinct  crater,  and  appropriately  called  "Bot- 
tom." No  harbor  breaks  Saba's  rock-bound 
shores;  there  is  no  safe  anchorage  and  no  good 
landing-place,  and,  if  one  would  visit  this  unique 
town,  one  must  step  ashore  from  a  small  boat 
upon  a  shingly  beach  and  either  climb  a  steep 
stairway  of  eight  hundred  stone  steps,  or  toil  up 
a  narrow,  difficult  trail  through  a  ravine  on  the 
other  side  of  the  island.  Bad  as  it  is  to  make 
the  ascent  empty  handed,  yet  the  Sabans  think 
nothing  of  climbing  to  their  aerie  with  a  barrel 
of  flour  or  similar  burden  on  their  heads,  for  they 
are  a  sturdy  race  and  every  article  brought  to 
Saba  from  the  outer  world  must  be  "headed"  up 
the  heights. 

Most  of  the  men  are  sailors,  as  they  have  been 
since  earliest  times,  and  sail  all  the  seven  seas, 
although  they  invariably  return  to  their  beloved 
island  home  to  pass  their  old  age,  when  possible. 


44  THE  WEST  INDIES 

And  indeed  they  could  scarce  find  a  lovelier  spot, 
for  Saba  possesses  a  temperate  climate  like  per- 
petual spring  and  the  town  is  as  neat,  tidy,  clean, 
and  trim  as  Dutch  industry  and  thrift  can  make 
it.  Many  of  the  Sabans  are  black,  but  a  large 
proportion  are  white,  and  as '  flaxen -haired,  blue- 
eyed,  and  pink-cheeked  as  any  denizens  of  Holland, 
and  there  are  few  people  of  mixed  blood. 

Aside  from  the  incomes  earned  by  their  sailor 
men,  the  Sabans  depend  for  a  livelihood  upon  rais- 
ing garden  truck,  making  delicate  and  beautiful 
lace  and  drawn  work,  and  building  boats.  Prob- 
ably of  all  the  strange  things  of  this  strangest  of 
strange  places  this  last  is  most  remarkable,  for 
here,  in  a  crater  one  thousand  feet  above  the 
sea  are  built  boats  which  for  seaworthiness, 
staunchness,  and_speed  are  famous  throughout 
the  Caribbean. 

ST.  EUSTATIUS 

St.  Eustatius  is  Saba's  nearest  neighbor,  twenty 
miles  distant  and  in  plain  sight ;  but  there  is  little 
resemblance  between  the  two  islands  or  the  ways 
of  the  people,  for  Statia  possesses  a  large  area  of 
fairly  level  land,  sloping  downwards  from  its  lofty 
crater  to  the  beach  upon  the  western  coast  and 
here,  in  quite  conventional  manner,  squats  old 
Orange  Town  with  a  safe  anchorage  ready  for 


ISLANDS  QUITE  OUT  OF  THE  WORLD  45 

any  vessel  which  sees  fit  to  enter.  To-day  there 
is  little  business  in  Statia,  little  of  interest  to  be 
seen,  for  Statia's  greatness  is  of  the  past;  but  in 
the  heart  of  every  patriotic  citizen  of  the  United 
States  the  name  of  St.  Eustatius  should  live  for- 
ever, for  'twas  here  the  Stars  and  Stripes  were 
first  saluted  by  guns  of  a  foreign  power. 

It  was  in  November,  1776,  that  the  guns  of 
ancient  Fort  Orange  roared  out  their  salvo  to  the 
new  flag  bravely  fluttering  from  the  masthead 
of  the  Andrew  Doria,  a  rakish  privateer  of  Balti- 
more. No  doubt  the  Statians,  and  sturdy  old 
Governor  De  Graaf,  repented  most  heartily  of 
this  honor  paid  to  the  new-born  republic,  for  it 
brought  their  British  neighbors  down  upon  them 
and  Lord  Rodney  sailed  forth  from  humbled  Statia 
with  booty  to  the  value  of  three  million  pounds 
sterling. 

A  vast  garden,  producing  cane,  tobacco,  indigo, 
coffee,  and  cotton,  and  supporting  a  population 
of  nearly  twenty-five  thousand  people,  Statia  in 
the  eighteenth  century  was  one  of  the  most  im- 
portant of  West  Indian  ports,  and  the  harbor  of 
Fort  Orange  was  filled  with  countless  ships  drawn 
here  by  the  immense  stores  of  supplies  in  this  free 
port,  and  which  proved  a  veritable  blessing  to  the 
Continentals. 

But  to-day  the  water-front  is  all  but  deserted, 
the  great  warehouses  are  in  ruins,  the  once  pros- 


46 


THE  WEST  INDIES 


perous  estates  are  grown  up  to  weeds  and  brush, 
the  population  has  dwindled  to  a  bare  two  thousand 
souls,  and  the  guns  of  old  Fort  Orange  are  rust- 
covered  and  mute. 


CHAPTER  IV 

ST.   KITTS  AND  NEVIS 

AFTER  five  days  of  naught  but  sea  and  sky, 
St.  Thomas  and  St.  Croix  appear  verdant,  lovely 
spots;  the  first  magnificent  and  lofty;  the  other 
rich,  colorful,  and  tropical,  but  they  both  pale 
into  insignificance  when  one  first  looks  upon  St. 
Kitts,  the  most  northerly  of  the  Leeward  Islands. 

Stretching  for  miles  to  north  and  south,  lies 
this  sun-bright,  smiling  isle,  its  massive  mountains 
cloud-draped  and  forest-covered,  its  hills,  valleys, 
and  tablelands  golden  with  vast  areas  of  cane, 
and  everywhere  the  palms.  Rimming  the  beaches 
above  the  slender  thread  of  foam,  they  grow 
in  countless  thousands;  they  border  the  perfect 
winding  roads  in  colonnades  for  scores  of  miles; 
they  cluster  above  imposing  plantation  homes  or 
tiny  negro  hovels  with  equal  impartiality,  and, 
clear-cut  as  silhouettes  against  the  wondrous  sky, 
they  stand  like  giant  sentinels  upon  the  hilltops. 

St.  Thomas  seemed  lofty  as  the  steamer  slipped 
along  its  coast  and  we  gazed  upwards  to  its  heights, 
but  compared  to  St.  Kitts  the  Virgin  isle  is  merely 

47 


48  THE  WEST  INDIES 

hilly.  Mountains  after  mountains  lift  their  ma- 
jestic bulks  from  the  cultivated  lands  in  one  stu- 
pendous rampart  of  green,  culminating  in  Mount 
Misery,  a  dormant  volcano,  whose  crater  rim  is 
shrouded  in  perpetual  clouds  four  thousand  feet 
above  the  sea. 

Continually  changing  is  the  panorama  presented 
by  this  lovely  British  isle.  One  moment  it  gleams 
and  scintillates  with  effulgent  sunlight;  the  next 
a  passing  cloud  drifts  on  the  wings  of  the  trade 
wind  from  the  east  and  instantly  the  mountain 
slopes  of  green  grow  black  and  somber,  the  island 
seems  to  frown,  and  a  veil  of  driving  rain  shuts 
mountains  from  view  as  by  a  curtain  drawn 
before  them.  A  minute  more,  and  the  downpour 
ceases  as  if  by  magic,  the  curtain  is  swept  aside, 
and  valleys  and  ravines  are  purple  with  the  mois- 
ture rising  from  their  depths.  Here  and  there 
wisps  of  cloud-wrack  still  cling  lovingly  to  the 
mountainsides,  the  sun  bursts  forth  once  more, 
and  St.  Kitts  smiles  a  welcome. 

Now  we  are  close  enough  to  distinguish  the 
various  units  that  make  up  the  island  as  a  whole. 
To  the  north  is  Sandy  Point,  sloping  gently  from 
the  sea  to  Mount  Misery's  heights,  and,  close 
under  the  shadow  of  the  volcano,  and  near  the 
shore,  snuggles  a  steep-sided,  detached  hill  stand- 
ing alone  above  the  level  cane  fields  round 
about. 


BASSETERRE,    ST.    KITTS 


THE    CIRCUS,    ST.    KITTS 


ST.  KITTS  AND  NEVIS  49 

Once  a  strongly  fortified  spot,  Brimstone  Hill 
as  it  is  called,  is  now  abandoned  and  its  crumbling 
forts  deserted,  save  by  troops  of  wild  monkeys 
which  haunt  the  forests  of  St.  Kitts, — descendants 
of  the  soldiers'  pets  brought  years  ago  from  Gi- 
braltar. From  Brimstone  Hill  southward  the 
mountains  diminish  in  size,  while  broad  culti- 
vated fields  and  valleys  increase,  until,  just  back 
of  the  town  of  Basseterre,  the  backbone  of  the 
island  ends  in  a  low,  rounded,  mound-like  emi- 
nence in  a  broad  cane-covered  plain  and  known  as 
Monkey  Hill. 

Wonderfully  pretty  is  Basseterre  viewed  from 
the  sea, — the  final  touch  needed  to  complete  a 
perfect  scene  of  tropical  beauty.  Red  roofs  and 
multi-tinted  buildings  gleam  amid  waving  palms, 
brightly  painted  sloops  and  schooners  ride  at 
anchor  on  the  wonderful  water,  and  scores  of 
gaudy-hued  row  boats  and  launches  swarm  about 
the  newly  arrived  ship,  their  chattering  negro 
occupants  filling  the  balmy  air  with  a  babel  of 
soft,  throaty  English. 

Near  the  center  of  the  water-front,  a  long 
iron  pier  juts  seaward  and  at  the  head  of 
this  looms  the  customs  house,  a  roomy  build- 
ing and  the  most  conspicuous  structure  in  the 
town. 

Landing  at  the  pier,  and  emerging  from  the 
customs  house,  one  comes  at  once  to  the  "Circus," 


50  THE  WEST  INDIES 

a  small  circular  open  space  or  plaza  from  which 
several  streets  radiate,  and  surrounded  by  tower- 
ing royal  palms  shading  an  ornamental  fountain. 
About  the  Circus,  and  in  the  vicinity,  are  the  best 
stores,  shops,  and  business  houses,  and  near  at 
hand  are  the  most  interesting  and  attractive  sights 
of  St.  Zitts's  capital. 

A  few  steps  to  the  right  is  a  lovely  little  park, 
with  well-kept  lawns  bordered  by  gorgeous  flowers 
and  blooming  shrubs,  and  shaded  by  magnificent 
fig  trees,  mahoganies,  cedars,  tamarinds,  and  palms. 
About  this  park  are  many  residences  of  well-to- 
do  Kittefonians  in  the  midst  of  lovely  grounds 
ablaze  with  flowering  vines  and  trees,  for  tropical 
vegetation  runs  riot  in  St.  Kitts  and  everywhere 
the  town  teems  with  wonderful  trees,  brilliant 
flowers,  and  great  palms.  It  is  a  strange  sensa- 
tion for  a  Northerner,  who  visits  these  islands  for 
the  first  time,  to  see  rare  orchids  and  strange 
exotics, — of  priceless  worth  and  confined  to  green- 
houses in  our  own  land, — blooming  and  growing 
uncared  for  and  unnoticed  by  the  wayside. 
Flaming  poincianas  and  heavy-scented  frangi- 
panis  spread  their  gorgeous  branches  overhead, 
night -blooming  cereus  sprawls  over  fences  and 
roadside  walls,  roses  grow  to  tree-like  proportions 
and  bloom  continuously,  gardenias,  crotons,  and 
jasmine  crowd  one  another  to  find  roothold  in  the 
crevices  of  paved  courtyards,  orchids  deck  trees 


ST.  KITTS  AND  NEVIS  51 

and  ruins,  while  amaryllis,  portulaca,  thunburgia, 
lantana,  and  many  another  of  our  prized  flowers, 
are  troublesome  weeds. 

But  if  you  would  obtain  a  good  idea  of  St.  Kitts's 
flora  turn  to  the  left  at  the  Circus  and  visit  the 
Public  Garden,  or,  better  still,  hire  one  of  the 
waiting  public  carriages  or  motor  cars  and  go 
where  you  will  in  ease  and  comfort  about  the  town 
and  to  the  outlying  countryside  as  well.  The 
roads  of  St.  Kitts  are  excellent  and  reach  all 
points  of  interest  and  importance  and  the  island 
may  be  entirely  encircled  in  a  day.  The  outlying 
sugar  estates  may  prove  interesting,  if  one  has 
not  seen  such  places  in  St.  Croix  or  elsewhere. 
There  is  a  beautiful  waterfall  at  Wingfield ;  there 
is  a  large  cavern  known  as  Lawyer  Steven's  Cave ; 
from  the  summit  of  Monkey  Hill  a  superb  view 
of  the  surrounding  country  and  the  sea  may  be 
obtained  while,  if  the  visitor  is  fond  of  scaling 
mountain  heights,  the  ascent  of  Mount  Misery 
may  be  made. 

It  is  a  wonderful  trip, — up  from  Sandy  Point 
through  the  "high  bush,"  as  the  primeval  forest 
is  called, — with  the  gigantic  trees  rising  for  a 
hundred  feet  and  more  on  every  hand,  a  maze- 
like  network  of  lianas  binding  trunks  and  branches 
together,  and  the  whole  forming  a  dense  canopy — 
cool,  damp,  and  silent — where  the  sunlight  never 
penetrates. 


52  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Above  the  forest  proper  is  the  world  of  mountain 
palms  and  giant  tree  ferns,  a  land  of  wind-swept 
drifting  clouds  which  bathe  the  mountain  in  per- 
petual mist,  and  then,  at  last,  one  comes  to  the 
crater.  From  rim  to  bottom  the  crater  is  nearly 
a  thousand  feet  in  depth,  its  sides  in  many  places 
sheer  precipices  of  scarlet  and  yellow,  at  other  spots 
covered  with  trees  and  vegetation,  while  far  below 
are  innumerable  boiling  springs  and  fumaroles  from 
which  sulphurous  vapors  are  ever  rising. 

There  is  no  record  of  an  eruption  in  St.  Kitts  in 
historic  times,  but  the  crater  is  still  active,  though 
it  slumbers,  and  at  any  moment  it  may  burst  forth 
and  wipe  the  fair  island  from  the  face  of  the  earth. 

With  all  its  luxuriant  tropic  beauty,  its  fertility, 
and  its  possibilities  yet  St.  Kitts  is  of  little  impor- 
tance commercially  and  its  inhabitants  are  far 
from  prosperous,  for  the  Kittefonians  have  never 
learned  to  meet  conditions  and  wean  themselves 
from  the  sugar  which  made  fortunes  for  their 
ancestors.  Although,  during  the  European  War, 
the  price  of  sugar  has  risen  by  leaps  and  bounds 
and  St.  Kitts  planters  are  doing  well,  there  is 
little  hope  for  continued  prosperity,  once  peace  is 
declared  and  sugar  falls  to  its  wonted  value. 

NEVIS 

In  even  worse  shape  is  Nevis,  whose  per- 
fect, symmetrical  towering  cone  sweeps  upward 


ST.  KITTS  AND  NEVIS  53 

from  the  sea  five  miles  southward  from  St. 
Kitts. 

Once  the  favorite  watering  place  and  health 
resort  for  the  elite  of  Europe,  America,  and  the 
Indies,  Nevis  has  fallen  to  poverty  and  decay. 
Once  princely  mansions  have  gone  to  ruin  and 
now  shelter  sordid  negro  hovels.  Where  revelry 
and  music  once  echoed  in  marble  halls  and  the 
lights  shed  by  a  thousand  candelabra  gleamed  on 
laces,  silks,  and  priceless  jewels  there  are  now  but 
weed-grown  piles  of  crumbling  masonry.  For- 
merly known  throughout  the  world  as  The  Gor- 
geous Isle,  the  birthplace  of  Alexander  Hamilton, 
the  spot  famous  as  the  scene  of  Lord  Nelson's 
marriage,  it  is  now  forgotten,  neglected,  and  of 
so  little  importance  that  few  ships  ever  drop 
anchor  in  Charlestown  harbor. 

But  it  is  beautiful  despite  all  this.  Its  climate 
is  as  perfect  as  in  its  most  glorious  days,  its  ther- 
mal baths,  medicinal  waters,  and  fertile  soil  still 
remain,  and  there  are  many  places  worth  visiting 
on  the  island. 

Hamilton's  birthplace  still  stands  upon  a  hill 
near  the  town,  although  in  ruins;  in  the  old  Fig 
Tree  Church  one  may  still  see  the  marriage 
register  recording  Nelson's  wedding  to  the  Widow 
Nisbet,  and  submerged  Jamestown — destroyed  by 
the  earthquake  of  1 680 — may  yet  be  distinguished, 
coral  encrusted,  beneath  the  waters  near  the  shore. 


54  THE  WEST  INDIES 

No  one  can  look  on  Nevis  without  a  thrill  of 
admiration  for  its  beauty;  no  one  can  visit  its 
historic  spots  without  a  pang  of  sorrow  for  its 
present  state.  It  is  but  a  corpse  of  Nevis  of  the 
past, — pathetic,  passed  away  forever  perhaps, 
but  beautiful  even  if  dead. 


CHAPTER  V 

ANTIGUA  AND  ITS  NEIGHBOR 

AFTER  the  lofty  mountains  of  St.  Kitts  and 
Nevis,  with  their  rich  green  forests,  Antigua  seems 
low  and  bare, — an  endless  succession  of  dull,  gray- 
green  hills  above  the  sea  and  backed  by  higher 
hills  of  softer,  brighter  hue,  but  with  little  sign  of 
the  luxuriant  vegetation  of  the  other  islands. 

Antigua,  however,  is  really  much  higher  than  it 
appears  and  some  of  its  interior  hills  rise  to  nearly 
1000  feet  above  the  sea.  But  in  every  way  it  is 
very  different  from  the  volcanic  islands  of  the 
Lesser  Antilles,  for  it  is  mainly  of  limestone  forma- 
tion and  lacks  the  grandeur,  the  scenic  beauties,  the 
tumbling  cataracts,  and  the  roaring""  mountain 
streams  of  its  neighbors. 

Moreover,  Antigua  has  long  been  denuded  of  its 
forests;  for  centuries  its  fertile  lands  have  been 
given  over  to  cane,  it  has  grown  dry  and  sterile  in 
many  places  and  there  is  scarce  a  square  foot  of 
its  arable  land  which  is  not  under  cultivation,  or 
has  not  been  cultivated  in  the  past. 

Outside  the  harbor  of  St.  John  the  ships  anchor 
55 


56  THE  WEST  INDIES 

nearly  five  miles  from  the  town,  for  bars  prevent 
large  vessels  from  entering  the  inner  harbor,  and 
little  can  be  seen  of  the  capital  from  the  steamer. 
By  means  of  a  launch,  passengers  are  carried  to  and 
from  the  shore,  but  it  is  a  long  inconvenient  trip 
and  many  visitors  to  the  islands  never  step  ashore 
at  Antigua,  and,  to  tell  the  truth,  they  miss  but 
little.  But  there  are  certain  interesting  things 
to  be  seen  and,  as  Antigua  is  the  capital  of 
the  Leeward  Island  Confederation,  it  is  worth 
visiting. 

Just  at  the  entrance  to  the  harbor  proper  the 
boat  passes  beneath  a  low  headland  crowned  with 
an  ancient  picturesque  fort  and  farther  up  the 
harbor  is  Rat  Island  with  its  Leper  Hospital, 
neatly  kept  and  pleasantly  situated  and  where 
those  afflicted  with  the  loathsome  disease  seem 
quite  happy  and  contented. 

Formerly  leprosy  was  all  too  common  in  the 
West  Indies  and  lepers  mingled  freely  with  their 
fellow  men  and  women,  and  even  took  employ- 
ment as  servants  and  peddled  fruits  and  vegetables 
in  the  markets.  To-day,  however,  they  are  segre- 
gated for  life  and  in  many  of  the  islands  there  is 
not  a  single  known  case  of  leprosy. 

Fortunately  for  the  West  Indies,  members  of 
the  white  race  were  very  seldom  affected  by  the 
disease  and  it  seemed  to  increase  or  spread  but 
little,  and  the  number  of  cases  remained  almost 


ANTIGUA  AND  ITS  NEIGHBOR       57 

constant,  even  when  no  systematic  efforts  were 
made  to  keep  it  under  control. 

But  it  was  unpleasant,  to  say  the  least,  to  find 
that  the  "boy"  who  had  been  engaged  to  carry 
one's  purchases  to  the  ship  was  a  leper.  Fortu- 
nately such  things  are  of  the  past  and  there  is  no 
more  danger  of  contracting  leprosy,  yaws,  or  any 
other  disease  in  the  Antilles  than  in  the  North.  • 

St.  John  is  beautifully  situated  at  the  head  of  its 
harbor  and  surrounded  by  rolling  hills;  the  streets 
are  straight  and  the  town  is  well  laid  out  and,  with 
a  little  care  and  expense,  it  might  well  be  one  of 
the  most  attractive  spots  in  the  islands.  But,  un- 
fortunately, the  average  British  West  Indian  has 
no  conception  of  the  "City  Beautiful"  and  appears 
to  take  no  pride  in  the  appearance  of  his  towns. 

St.  John  has  a  few  good  buildings,  such  as  the 
government  offices  and  court-house,  and  an  ex- 
cellent market ;  but  the  bulk  of  the  town  is  made 
up  of  frail  wooden  shacks,  ramshackle,  unpainted, 
down-at-the-heel  shops,  and  hovels,  which  crowd 
between  the  better  buildings  and  obtrude  them- 
selves along  every  sidewalk.  But  we  should  not 
blame  the  Antiguans  or  their  neighbors  too  severely 
for  this  state  of  affairs.  Through  shortsighted 
policy  the  powers  that  be  tax  improvements, — 
even  to  a  coat  of  paint  on  a  house, — and  to  avoid 
assuming  burdens  they  cannot  bear,  the  people  let 
their  houses  and  shops  go  unpainted,  uncared  for, 


58  THE  WEST  INDIES 

and  neglected.  A  fire,  which  would  sweep  the 
town  from  end  to  end,  would  be  a  blessing  in  dis- 
guise in  St.  John,  as  in  many  other  of  the  British 
islands,  as,  from  the  ashes,  a  new  and  better  town 
would  no  doubt  arise,  as  occurred  in  Port  of  Spain. 
Such  a  beneficial  conflagration  is  not  likely  to 
occur,  however,  for  St.  John  possesses  a  fire 
department  and  the  firemen  are  as  zealous  of 
saving  a  shanty  as  a  government  building. 

At  the  rear  of  the  town  the  great  yellow  Angli- 
can church  rises  far  above  all  else,  its  twin  towers 
the  most  prominent  landmark  to  be  seen,  and  from 
them  a  superb  view  may  be  obtained. 

In  the  churchyard  are  many  ancient  tombstones 
of  once  prominent  Antiguans,  and  at  either  side  of 
the  gateway  are  statues  said  to  have  been  taken 
from  one  of  Napoleon's  ships. 

Perhaps  the  church  itself  is  as  curious  and  inter- 
esting as  anything  in  St.  John.  Externally  the 
church  is  of  massive  stone  construction,  but  with- 
in it  is  of  wood,  for  it  is  really  one  church  within 
another, — a  unique  method  of  construction  de- 
signed to  protect  the  congregation  from  the  effects 
of  earthquakes.  Although  not  volcanic,  yet 
Antigua  is  frequently  shaken  by  earth  tremors  and 
once,  during  an  unusually  severe  quake,  the  old 
church  tumbled  about  the  ears  of  a  wedding  party. 
Observing  that  the  stones  fell  inward  the  Anti- 
guans ingeniously  built  a  wooden  church  and  sur- 


ANTIGUA  AND  ITS  NEIGHBOR       59 

rounded  it  with  a  shell  of  masonry.  Now,  should 
a  similar  catastrophe  occur,  the  wooden  structure 
will  protect  any  worshipers  within  from  falling 
stones,  and  if  the  outer  church  is  destroyed  a 
complete  wooden  edifice  will  still  remain  standing. 

Back  of  the  church,  and  beyond  the  town,  is 
the  Government  House  surrounded  by  beautiful 
grounds  and  lovely  gardens,  and  near  at  hand  are 
tennis  courts,  cricket  fields,  and  a  broad,  smooth- 
swarded  savanna  surrounded  by  avenues  shaded 
by  double  rows  of  mahogany  trees. 

Near  here  is  the  Botanic  Station, — small  but 
charming, — and  filled  with  a  wealth  of  palms, 
flowers,  trees,  shrubs,  and  rare  tropical  plants, 
orchids  and  cacti,  and  so  crowded  with  vegetation, 
so  cool  and  shady,  and  so  lacking  in  artificiality, 
that  it  is  even  more  attractive  than  many  of  the 
more  pretentious  gardens  in  the  other  islands. 

When  visiting  this  garden  the  stranger  is  invari- 
ably surprised  to  see  a  lighthouse  standing  upon  a 
low  hill  above  a  tiny  pond,  as  if  placed  in  this  out- 
of-the-way  spot  for  the  sole  benefit  of  voyagers  on 
the  miniature  lake.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  light 
is  visible  from  the  sea  and  serves  as  a  guiding 
beacon  to  vessels  approaching  the  harbor. 

Aside  from  the  places  mentioned  there  is  little 
else  of  real  interest  in  St.  John  and  still  less  of 
attractiveness,  but  the  island  is  traversed  by 
splendid  roads  and  a  ride,  by  carriage  or  motor 


6o  THE  WEST  INDIES 

car,  may  be  taken  to  advantage.  The  scenery  is 
nothing  to  boast  about,  but  there  are  many  large 
and  fine  estates,  charming  beach-rimmed  bays  and 
coves,  and  last  and  by  no  means  least,  the  Valley  of 
Petrifications,  where  one  may  gather  specimens  of 
fossil  trees  and  wood  from  the  petrified  forest. 
Then  there  is  English  Harbor,  formerly  an  impor- 
tant port  and  naval  station,  where  once  was  a  great 
dockyard,  and  famous  as  the  spot  wherein  Nelson 
refitted  his  fleet  ere  sailing  forth  to  the  Battle  of 
Trafalgar. 

Taken  as  a  whole,  however,  Antigua  possesses 
few  real  attractions  for  visitors.  The  scenery  is 
monotonous  and  reminds  one  of  a  vast,  well-cul- 
tivated, but  unattractive,  farmland.  From  earliest 
times  Antigua  has  been  a  sugar  island;  the  thin 
soil  and  lack  of  water  prevent  many  other  profit- 
able crops  from  being  grown  and  while,  under 
war  conditions,  sugar  pays  handsomely,  yet 
Antigua's  prosperity  is  of  the  past  and  its  outlook 
for  the  future  is  far  from  bright. 

BARBUDA 

Northeast  thirty  miles  from  Antigua  is  the 
little  island  of  Barbuda,  low,  flat,  out  of  the  beaten 
track  and  once  a  veritable  garden  spot. 

Here,  in  former  days,  lived  the  Codringtons, 
owners  of  the  islet  and  literally  monarchs  of  all 
they  surveyed.  To  this  island  manor  they  brought 


ANTIGUA  AND  ITS  NEIGHBOR       61 

slaves  from  Africa,  they  imported  cattle,  sheep, 
goats,  and  hogs  from  England  and,  to  afford  sport 
and  recreation  for  themselves  and  their  guests, 
they  stocked  Barbuda  with  fallow  deer,  Guinea 
fowl,  pheasants,  and  other  game. 

Long  years  have  passed  since  the  ' '  Great  House  " 
was  tenanted  by  the  feudal  lords  of  Barbuda; 
Codrington  Village  has  dwindled  to  a  few  wattled 
negro  huts;  the  island  has  been  left  to  nature  and 
the  blacks,  and  only  the  wild  beasts  and  birds  have 
prospered  and  increased.  Where  broad  fields 
once  bore  rich  crops,  are  now  dense  thickets  of 
chaparral  and  jungles  of  scrub;  crumbling  walls 
and  ruined  buildings  are  buried  under  creepers  and 
vines,  and  the  once  well-cultivated  isle  has  become 
a  wilderness  abounding  in  wild  cattle,  deer,  and 
feathered  game.  If  fond  of  hunting,  a  visit  to 
Barbuda  is  worth  making,  for  there  is  sport  in 
plenty  and  pigeons,  ducks,  plover,  and  wild  fowl 
add  their  quota  to  the  introduced  game.  In 
order  to  hunt  on  Barbuda  a  permit  must  be  ob- 
tained from  the  agents  in  Antigua  and  everything 
one  may  require  must  be  carried,  for  there  are  no 
accommodations  for  visitors  at  Barbuda  and  only 
by  a  small  sailing  vessel  can  one  reach  this  Carib- 
bean game  preserve. 

MONTSERRAT 

West  of  Antigua,  and  some  fifty  miles  to  the 


62  THE  WEST  INDIES 

south  of  St.  Kitts,  is  Montserrat,  a  spot  most 
beautiful  to  look  upon, — a  veritable  emerald  gem 
in  a  sapphire  setting. 

Although  a  small  island,  only  twelve  miles  long 
and  seven  miles  wide,  yet  its  mountains  tower  for 
three  thousand  feet  above  the  Caribbean  Sea  and 
within  its  limited  confines  is  at  least  one  active 
volcanic  crater. 

But  so  perfect  is  its  composition,  so  admirably 
proportioned  its  mountains,  hills,  and  valleys,  that 
Montserrat  appears  more  like  an  artist's  master- 
piece than  the  reality,  although  no  painter  could 
ever  hope  to  transfer  such  color,  light,  and  atmos- 
phere to  canvas.  Dominating  the  island,  a  mas- 
sive, flat-topped,  pyramidal  mountain  rises  grandly 
against  the  sky,  while,  flanking  it  to  right  and  left, 
are  two  stupendous  bowl-like  craters,  their  sides, — 
seamed,  scarred,  and  riven  by  long-forgotten 
eruptions,  now  hidden  beneath  a  rich  mantle  of 
verdure.  Forest-clad  are  the  higher  mountain 
sides,  but  on  their  lower  slopes  are  great  orchards 
of  limes,  groves  of  cocoa,  and  neat  terraced  gardens 
which  gradually  give  way  to  fields  of  waving  cane 
stretching  downwards  to  the  thread  of  surf  along 
the  ebon  beaches. 

Across  the  fields,  and  winding  through  the  fertile 
valley  towards  the  mountains,  gleam  white  ribbons 
of  roads  while,  half-hidden  among  countless  palms, 
the  little  town  of  Plymouth  nestles  beside  the  sea. 


ANTIGUA  AND  ITS  NEIGHBOR       63 

No  doubt  the  Irish  colonists,  who  first  settled 
Montserrat,  were  reminded  of  their  beloved  Emer- 
ald Isle  when  they  gazed  upon  this  lovely  spot  with 
its  rich  and  fertile  valleys,  its  rippling  streams  and 
velvety  green  verdure.  Indeed,  Montserrat  may 
well  be  called  a  West  Indian  Erin,  for  not  only  was 
it  settled  largelp  by  the  "Wild  Irish"  but  the  most 
striking  peculiarities  of  the  place  are  the  brogue 
upon  its  peoples'  tongues  and  their  Celtic  names. 

It  seems  strange  indeed  to  find  coal-black  negroes 
bearing  such  names  as  Patrick  Donovan,  Michael 
O'Hara,  and  Edward  Mulcahy,  but  though  their 
skins  are  dark  these  natives  of  Montserrat  are  as 
quick-witted,  easy-going,  and  as  prone  to  "Blar- 
ney" as  their  Irish  ancestors.  Even  the  physical 
characteristics  of  the  Celts  have  been  inherited  by 
many  of  the  Montserratans,  and  red-headed, 
freckle-faced  negroes  are  by  no  means  uncommon, 
though  far  less  often  seen  than  formerly,  for  the 
island  has  passed  through  many  lean  years  and 
large  numbers  of  the  people  have  migrated  to  more 
promising  lands  and  the  neighboring  islands. 

To-day,  however,  Montserrat 's  one-time  prosper- 
ity is  in  a  measure  returning,  for  limes  and  cocoa 
have  supplanted  cane  to  a  large  extent.  Montserrat 
lime  juice  is  known  throughout  the  world  and  many 
planters  are  doing  wonderfully  well.  But  there  is 
little  to  interest  the  casual  visitor  to  Montserrat. 
Much  of  the  town  is  dilapidated,  broken  down,  and 


64  THE  WEST  INDIES 

in  semi-ruins ;  vines,  creepers,  and  gorgeous  flowers 
clamber  riotously  over  the  crumbling  walls  of 
once  beautiful  mansions  and  imposing  buildings, 
and  shanty-like,  flimsy  huts  crowd  weed-grown 
courtyards  and  fill  the  gaps  of  tumble-down  walls. 

Many  of  the  streets  are  well  kept  and  smoothly 
paved,  the  roads  in  the  outlying  districts  are 
excellent,  and  a  drive  into  the  country  and  across 
the  hills  is  the  most  enjoyable  means  of  spending 
one's  time  in  this  tropical  Erin. 

There  are  many  beautiful  views,  several  fine 
estates,  groves  of  cocoa  and  lime  orchards  to  be 
seen,  while  the  active  crater,  known  as  the  "Sou- 
friere,"  is  the  most  interesting  spot  on  the  island. 

Here  are  steaming-hot  beds  of  sulphur  and  sand, 
streams  of  boiling  water,  hot  springs  and  fumaroles, 
— the  whole  forming  a  miniature  inferno  surrounded 
by  a  wealth  of  tropical  foliage  and  within  easy 
access  from  Plymouth. 


CHAPTER  VI 

GUADELOUPE,   WHERE  WAVES  THE  TRICOLOR 

FROM  horizon  to  horizon  stretch  the  shores  of 
Guadeloupe,  upward  to  the  drifting  clouds  soar 
its  scores  of  peaks,  and,  gazing  upon  its  countless 
valleys,  its  endless  hills,  its  succession  of  mile-high 
mountains  and  its  interminable  shores,  one  feels 
as  if  looking  upon  a  continent,  rather  than  an 
island,  and  all  preconceived  ideas  of  these  "small 
islands"  are  cast  to  the  winds. 

A  mere  speck  on  the  map,  the  bulk  of  Guade- 
loupe overwhelms  the  stranger,  as  the  ship  steams 
along  the  coast  for  hour  after  hour;  for  all  the 
islands  already  visited,  if  rolled  into  one  and  mul- 
tiplied a  hundredfold,  would  suffer  woefully  in 
comparison  with  this  glorious,  majestic  island 
above  which  flies  the  tricolor  of  France.  In  bold, 
verdured  headlands  the  island  rises  from  the  sea, 
and,  by  stupendous  ridges,  massive  foothills,  and 
abysmal  purple-shadowed  rifts,  sweeps  back  and 
ever  upward  to  the  central  mountain  range,  where, 
enthroned  among  the  clouds,  Soufriere  lifts  its  regal 
head  five  thousand  feet  above  the  encircling  sea. 
s  65 


66  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Almost  awe-inspiring  in  its  magnificent  grandeur 
is  this  northern  portionrof  Guadeloupe, — a  sublime 
panorama  of  forest-clad,  mountainous  country 
seemingly  untouched  by  hand  of  man.  But  in 
reality  much  of  the  land  is  under  cultivation  and 
cocoa  groves  fill  many  a  valley  and  clamber  up  the 
mountain  slopes,  and  the  foliage  of  coffee,  spice 
trees,  limes,  oranges,  and  gardens  mingles  with  the 
natural  verdure  of  the  bush  and  is  unrecognizable 
from  the  passing  ship. 

Here  too,  in  the  shadow  of  the  mountain  ranges, 
is  Basseterre,  the  capital ;  but  steamers  seldom  stop 
there,  for  the  commerce,  trade,  and  industry  of  the 
island  center  at  Pointe-a-Pitre,  the  chief  port  of 
Guadeloupe  and  situated  near  the  southern  mouth 
of  Salt  River  on  Grande  Terre. 

In  reality  Guadeloupe  consists  of  two  islands,  the 
more  westerly  and  northerly  being  rugged,  mag- 
nificent, and  lofty, — a  scenic  wonderland, — and 
known  as  Guadeloupe  proper,  while  to  the  east, 
and  separated  only  by  a  narrow  creek  known  as 
Salt  River,  lies  Grande  Terre,  comparatively  low 
and  level  and  with  little  in  the  way  of  scenic 
beauties.  In  addition  to  these  two  main  islands 
there  are  the  "Saintes," — three  small,  towering 
islets  off  the  southwestern  coast;  "Marie  Galante," 
like  a  massive,  terraced  pyramid,  and  bulky  "De- 
sirade"  with  its  sliced-off  summit,  the  whole  cover- 
ing an  area  of  over  seven  hundred  square  miles. 


GUADELOUPE  67 

In  contrast  to  the  superb  mountain  scenery  of 
the  northern  half  of  Guadeloupe,  Grande  Terre 
seems  even  more  dull  and  uninteresting  than  it  is 
in  reality,  but  it  is  wonderfully  rich  and  every 
available  inch  of  its  surface  is  under  cultivation, — 
largely  sugar  cane, — and  close  to  the  port  is  one 
of  the  largest  sugar  mills  in  the  world, — the  Usine 
Arbousier. 

••  Pointe-a-Pitre  presents  a  busy,  bustling  scene  and 
seems  a  great  city  after  the  decadent,  poverty- 
stricken  aspect  of  Montserrat,  Antigua,  and  the 
northern  islands.  There  are  commodious  stone 
docks,  puffing  tugs  with  strings  of  lighters  ply  back 
and  forth,  numerous  steamers,  schooners,  and 
square-riggers  swing  at  anchor  or  are  moored  at 
the  piers,  the  landlocked  harbor  teems  with  life, 
and  the  waterside  streets  of  the  well-built  town  are 
noisy  with  industry. 

Pointe-a-Pitre  is  badly  in  need  of  a  street-clean- 
ing department,  for  it  is  none  too  tidy—  a  fault  of 
many  French  towns — but  it  is  far  better  kept  than 
a  few  years  ago  and  is  well  laid  out ;  its  streets  are 
wide,  smooth,  and  straight,  and  one  looks  in  vain 
for  the  miserable  huts  so  typical  of  the  British 
islands.  To  find  such  eyesores  one  must  go  to  the 
poorer  quarters  and  the  suburbs,  for,  in  the  city 
itself,  the  buildings  lining  the  streets  are  neat  and 
brightly  painted.  They  are  mainly  of  wood,  how- 
ever, for  fires,  earthquakes,  and  hurricanes  have 


68  THE  WEST  INDIES 

swept  Guadeloupe  repeatedly,  and  the  inhabitants 
have  learned  by  experience  that  it's  cheaper  and 
easier  to  rebuild  with  timber  than  with  stone  and 
concrete. 

Typically  French  is  the  atmosphere  of  Pointe- 
a-Pitre, — the  colors  are  brilliant  almost  to  garish- 
ness,  the  women  rival  the  glory  of  Solomon  in  their 
quaint,  gay  costumes  and  everywhere  a  chatter  of 
French  is  heard.  Everyone  seems  busy,  prosper- 
ous, and  energetic;  drays  creak  and  lumber  along, 
laden  with  produce  or  hauling  cargo  from  the  ships ; 
motor  trucks  thunder  by,  and,  about  the  market- 
place, the  din  is  deafening. 

Around  the  great  roofed  market  centers  the  life 
and  business  of  Pointe-a-Pitre  and  on  a  Saturday, 
when  the  country  people  flock  to  town  from  far 
and  near  to  sell  their  produce,  the  place  is  ablaze 
with  color  and  packed  to  overflowing.  Here,  for 
the  first  time,  one  sees  the  picturesque  costumes 
of  the  French  West  Indian  women, — the  dress 
which  has  made  the  women  of  Martinique  and 
Guadeloupe  famous  for  their  beauty  and  which 
makes  them  appear  as  of  a  distinct  race  from  the 
ragged,  slovenly,  unattractive  females  of  Antigua, 
St.  Kitts,  or  the  other  northern  islands. 

In  each  of  the  French  islands  the  costume  varies 
in  minor  details,  but  in  general  effect  it  is  similar, 
whether  the  wearer  belongs  to  Guadeloupe,  Mar- 
tinique, or  Dominica, — for  the  latter  island  is  more 


GUADELOUPE  69 

French  than  British  in  manners,  customs,  and 
speech,  although  an  English  colony.  The  chief 
characteristic  of  the  Creole  woman's  costume  is 
the  turban  or  "Madras, "  a  gorgeously  striped  and 
checked  cloth  manufactured  and  sold  for  this 
special  purpose,  and  tied  in  a  coquettish,  jaunty 
manner.  In  each  island  where  the  Madras  is 
worn  the  method  of  tying  it  is  distinct,  and  by  the 
form  of  the  turban  the  womenfolk's  native  island 
may  readily  be  known.  The  dress  itself  is  short- 
waisted,  with  enormous,  trailing,  stiffly-starched 
skirt, — preferably  of  glaring  colors  and  large  de- 
sign,— and,  to  finish  off  the  whole,  a  brilliant  silk 
kerchief  or  "foulard"  is  worn  folded  across  the 
shoulders  while  strings  of  massive  gold  beads 
encircle  the  neck  and  enormous  earrings  and  brace- 
lets adorn  wrists  and  ears. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  this  picturesque  cos- 
tume is  rapidly  giving  way  to  more  conventional 
garments,  and  only  among  the  older  conservative 
set,  and  on  Sundays  and  holidays,  can  the  visitor 
see  the  Creole  "filles"  in  all  their  glory,  although 
some  are  always  in  evidence. 

With  all  its  life,  'color,  and  bustle,  and  its  charm- 
ing foreign  atmosphere,  Pointe-a-Pitre  is  unbear- 
ably hot  at  midday  and  there  is  comparatively 
little  to  be  seen  in  and  about  the  town. 

There  is  a  massive  cathedral  in  the  center  of  the 
city,  with  a  little  open  plaza  before  it;  there  are 


70  THE  WEST  INDIES 

a  few  handsome  residences  in  the  same  neighbor- 
hood, and  there  is  a  large  square,  or  savanna, 
bordered  by  a  shaded  promenade  leading  to  the 
inner  harbor.  There  is  also  an  attractive  public 
garden,  a  theater,  a  museum,  and  a  chamber  of 
agriculture,  but  the  principal  public  buildings,  the 
government  offices,  and  the  residence  of  the  gov- 
ernor are  at  Basseterre. 

The  drive  from  Pointe-a-Pitre  to  the  capital  is 
charming  and,  as  an  automobile  line  makes  regular 
daily  trips  between  the  two  towns,  the  visitor  may 
obtain  an  excellent  idea  of  the  island  without  the 
least  inconvenience  or  exertion. 

Basseterre,  as  a  town,  is  less  interesting  than 
Pointe-a-Pitre  and  is  scarcely  half  the  latter's 
size.  Its  chief  importance  lies  in  the  fact  that  it 
is  the  capital  and  seat  of  government,  and  it  makes 
no  claim  to  being  of  commercial  importance. 
The  French  very  wisely  separated  commercial  and 
political  centers  in  their  islands,  thus  inducing  a 
more  even  distribution  of  wealth  and  population 
and  compelling  travel  from  place  to  place,  with 
the  result  that  their  colonies  are  far  more  thickly 
settled  than  those  of  Britain,  while  excellent  high- 
ways connect  all  important  places.  To  this  fore- 
sight the  prosperity  and  progress  of  the  French 
islands  are  largely  due,  but  the  French  West 
Indians  have  placed  less  faith  in  sugar  than  their 
English  neighbors  and  have  never  been  given  to 


GUADELOUPE  71 

"putting  all  their  eggs  in  one  basket,"  so  to  speak, 
and  they  have  won  out  by  providing  a  variety  of 
resources  to  fall  back  upon  when  sugar  ceased  to 
pay  an  enormous  profit.  They  have  prospered 
where  the  British  have  gone  bankrupt,  good-sized 
towns  and  villages  are  scattered  over  the  land,  and 
their  ports  are  busy,  provided  with  modern  ap- 
pliances, and  are  well  filled  with  shipping. 

Perchance  character  and  temperament  have 
had  much  to  do  with  this,  for  in  the  British  islands, 
where  French  blood  and  traditions  predominate, 
conditions  are  far  better  than  in  the  strictly  Eng- 
lish islands. 


CHAPTER  VII 

DOMINICA,   THE  CARIBBEAN  WONDERLAND 

LARGEST  of  the  Leeward  Islands,  loftiest  of  the 
Lesser  Antilles,  and  loveliest  of  the  West  Indian 
isles  is  Dominica. 

Twenty-five  miles  south  of  Guadeloupe  it 
looms  against  the  sky,  a  shimmering,  opalescent 
vision,  ethereal,  hazy,  and  unreal, — like  the  dream 
castle  of  a  fairy  tale.  And  none  of  the  enchant- 
ment of  distance  is  lost  on  nearing  Dominica,  for 
it  is  doubtful  if  anywhere  in  the  whole  wide  world 
can  be  found  an  island  more  beautiful. 

It  seems  as  if  nature  had  done  her  utmost,  had 
exerted  her  every  effort  to  produce  a  masterpiece, 
and  Dominica  was  the  result,  for,  as  one  travels 
north  or  south  along  the  crescent  of  the  Caribbees, 
the  mountains  become  higher  and  higher  and  the 
beauties  and  luxuriance  of  the  islands  increase, 
until  altitude,  scenery,  vegetation,  and  grandeur 
culminate  here. 

From  sea  to  sky  the  island  is  one  towering,  ma- 
jestic mass  of  mountains.  Upward  from  the 
azure  sea  they  spring  in  sheer  dizzying  precipices 
72 


DOMINICA  73 

and  soaring  peaks.  They  overhang  the  passing 
ship  and  stretch  in  endless  succession  to  distant 
summits  lost  in  blue  haze  amid  the  clouds.  Be- 
tween them  yawn  stupendous  clefts,  black  canons 
and  mile-deep  gorges.  Foaming  torrents  dash 
through  broad  fertile  valleys  towards  the  sea  and 
flashing  cataracts  spring  from  the  dense  verdure 
and  fall,  like  molten  silver,  into  unseen  shadowy 
depths.  And  over  all  is  spread  a  wealth  of  vegeta- 
tion, a  mantle  of  forest,  inconceivable  in  its  lux- 
uriance, its  color,  and  its  variety.  In  one  vast  sea 
of  infinitely  tinted  green  it  sweeps  from  beating 
surf  across  valleys,  hills,  tablelands,  and  mountains, 
to  the  very  summit  of  sky-piercing  Diablotin  which 
towers,  sublime,  massive,  titanic,  above  all  else, — 
the  highest  peak  in  the  Lesser  Antilles. 

For  mile  after  mile,  for  hour  after  hour,  the  ship 
steams  along  this  coast  and  ever  the  wondrous 
panorama  of  scenery  stretches  to  north  and  south 
and  from  beach  to  clouds.  Many  a  tiny  village  is 
passed,  many  a  broad  river-filled  valley  is  opened 
to  view,  cocoa  groves,  lime  orchards,  and  golden 
patches  of  cane  are  seen  breaking  the  deeper  tint 
of  forest,  until,  at  last,  the  steamer  comes  to  rest 
off  the  port  of  Roseau. 

Fortunate  indeed  is  the  voyager  who  first  looks 
upon  Dominica  as  the  sun  glows  like  a  ball  of  mol- 
ten metal  on  the  western  rim  of  the  sea.  When  the 
sapphire  surface  of  the  Caribbean  is  transformed  to 


74  THE  WEST  INDIES 

a  sheet  cf  polished  amethyst;  when,  through  the 
soft,  effulgent  glow  of  waning  daylight,  the  naked 
cliffs  are  touched  with  burnished  gold,  the  verdure 
gleams  with  coppery  hues  and  the  trade-clouds 
wreathe  the  mountaintops  in  diadems  of  pink  and 
rose.  At  any  hour,  at  any  time  from  dawn  till 
dark,  Dominica  is  beautiful  beyond  compare,  but 
when  the  visitor  steps  ashore  at  Roseau  comes  dis- 
appointment, for  the  capital  is  the  one  blot  upon 
this  perfect  island,  where  only  man  is  vile. 

Picturesque  to  a  degree,  marvelously  neat  and 
clean,  yet  Roseau  is  scarce  more  than  a  town  of 
hovels.  Unkempt,  unpainted  shanties  are  built 
upon  and  within  the  ruins  of  fine  stone  buildings 
long  since  fallen  to  decay;  they  stand  in  scores 
along  the  best  streets  and  obtrude  themselves  on 
every  hand,  and  the  few  really  good  and  substan- 
tial stores  and  residences  are  almost  lost  to  sight 
amid  the  omnipresent,  shabby,  flimsy  structures. 
It  is  the  same  ridiculous  tax  on  improvements 
which  exists  in  all  the  Leeward  Islands  which  keeps 
Roseau  in  this  disgraceful  state,  for  Dominica  is 
the  most  prosperous  of  the  Confederation,  its 
people, — albeit  almost  wholly  of  the  colored  race, — 
are  industrious,  intelligent,  and  comparatively  well- 
to-do  and  they  realize  the  shortcomings  of  their 
capital.  Not  until  improvement  and  progress  are 
fostered,  rather  than  discouraged,  will  the  British 
West  Indian  towns  become  worthy  of  their  name 


DOMINICA  75 

and  their  surroundings,  and  until  that  time,  Roseau 
will  remain  as  it  is, — an  eyesore,  an  ulcer,  and  a 
disgrace. 

But  with  all  its  faults  one  can  find  much  to 
admire  in  Roseau.  There  are  many  spots  of  in- 
terest and  beauty  about  the  town,  and,  once  first 
impressions  are  overcome,  the  visitor  will  find 
Roseau  is  not  so  bad  as  it  looks. 

Every  street  within  the  town,  whether  quaint, 
cobbled  lane  or  broad  smooth  macadamed  thor- 
oughfare,— and  there  are  many  such, — is  swept  and 
scoured  daily  and  every  street  is  edged  by  open 
gutters  ever  filled  with  rushing  water  from  the 
hills,  for  Roseau  has  a  water  supply  unequaled  in 
the  West  Indies.  Indeed,  the  stranger  is  apt  to 
think  Dominica  is  over  supplied  with  water,  for 
the  greatest  drawback  to  an  otherwise  beautiful 
and  healthy  climate  is  the  superabundant  rain. 
Of  all  the  West  Indies,  Dominica  can  boast  of 
being  the  wettest  and,  for  that  matter,  there  are 
but  few  places  in  the  world  where  more  rain  falls 
during  the  year.  In  many  of  the  mountainous 
districts  over  three  hundred  inches  of  rain  is  the 
average.  Think  of  it !  over  an  inch  a  day  year  in 
and  year  out.  No  wonder  the  natives  say  that  in 
Dominica  they  measure  the  rain  "by  yards,  not 
inches." 

But  this  is  only  in  the  highlands,  where  the 
clouds  from  the  Atlantic  drift  against  the  cool, 


76  THE  WEST  INDIES 

forest-covered  peaks  and  bathe  the  land  in  a  con- 
tinual heavy  mist  or  light  rain.  Along  the  coast 
the  rainfall  is  much  less — only  a  little  more  than 
one  hundred  inches  at  Roseau — but  there  are  no 
distinct  "dry"  and  "wet"  seasons,  rather  a 
"wet"  and  a  "wetter." 

Scarce  a  day  passes  without  rain,  but,  as  a  rule, 
the  showers  are  of  short  duration.  They  often  fall 
from  a  blue  and  cloudless  sky,  no  one  pays  any 
attention  to  them  and,  inconvenient  as  they  may 
be  when  sightseeing,  yet  they  are  necessary.  The 
luxuriance,  fertility,  and  beauty  of  the  island  de- 
pend upon  the  seemingly  excessive  rainfall;  with- 
out it,  Dominica  would  be  but  a  barren  waste  and 
even  a  comparatively  short  drought  plays  havoc 
with  the  crops  and  results  in  untold  losses  to  the 
planters. 

If  the  visitor  wishes  to  see  the  interior  of  Domin- 
ica, or  plans  to  go  any  considerable  distance  from 
the  town.it  will  be  necessary  to  travel  on  horseback, 
for  there  are  few  roads  suitable  for  wheeled  vehi- 
cles on  the  island,  and  while  there  are  many  car- 
riages and  motor  cars  in  Roseau  their  sphere  of 
usefulness  is  very  limited. 

Luckily  for  those  who  cannot  ride,  there  is  enough 
of  interest  to  occupy  one's  time  for  several  days  in 
the  town  and  within  easy  walking  or  driving  dis- 
tance. There  are  numerous  well-stocked  stores, 
several  excellent  boarding-houses,  a  good  hotel, 


CARIB   GIRL,    DOMINICA 


DOMINICA  77 

an  ice  factory,  a  museum,  two  clubs,  Anglican, 
Methodist,  and  Catholic  churches,  a  convent,  the 
Government  House,  the  ancient  historic  fort  with 
its  empty  embrasures  pointing  over  the  town  and 
speaking  eloquently  of  slave  insurrections  in  the 
past,  and  a  Carnegie  library,  not  to  mention  the 
jail,  the  hospital,  and  the  various  government 
buildings. 

The  crowning  glory  of  Dominica's  capital,  the 
most  beautiful  and  interesting  spot  to  be  seen 
near  town,  is  the  Botanic  Station  or  Public  Garden 
and  scarce  five  minutes'  walk  from  the  landing- 
place.  Here,  at  the  foot  of  Morne  Bruce,  and  some 
fifty  acres  in  extent,  is  a  veritable  wonderland  of 
tropic  vegetation.  Broad  velvety  lawns  are  dotted 
with  rows  and  groups  of  palms  of  every  known 
kind  and  from  all  corners  of  the  world;  trees, 
wonderful  with  gorgeous  flowers  or  marvelous  in 
habit,  border  the  smooth  gravel  drives  and  paths, 
and  an  endless  variety  of  blooming  shrubs  and 
brilliant  flowers  fill  innumerable  beds.  Stretching 
up  the  hillside,  and  filling  the  shady  dale  at  its 
base,  are  nutmeg  and  cocoa  groves,  orchards  of 
fruit  trees,  hedges  of  vanilla,  and  an  infinite 
number  of  timber,  rubber,  and  otherwise  commer- 
cially valuable  trees,  while,  surrounded  by  gigantic 
bamboos  and  rank  foliage,  are  great  thatched  sheds 
which  shelter  hundreds  of  rare  and  wonderful 
orchids.  No  other  botanic  gardens  in  the  Antilles 


78  THE  WEST  INDIES 

can  compare  with  it,  and  if  the  visitor  to  Dominica 
sees  nothing  else  on  the  island  his  trip  will  be  well 
repaid. 

From  the  summit  of  Morne  Bruce, — an  easy 
climb, — a  superbly  beautiful  view  may  be  obtained. 
At  one's  feet  lie  the  gardens  and  the  town, — look- 
ing very  pretty  from  this  height, — to  the  west 
stretches  the  illimitable  blue  Caribbean  and,  in- 
land, is  the  magnificent  Roseau  Valley  with  the 
flashing,  foaming  river  winding  through  the  vast 
lime  orchards  which  cover  hill  and  dale  to  the 
steeper  mountainsides  which  rise  in  wild,  forest- 
clad  heights  in  every  direction. 

Near  the  gardens,  but  a  step  from  the  en- 
trance in  fact,  is  the  Bath  Estate,  the  head- 
quarters of  the  lime  industry  of  the  world,  for  it 
is  the  largest  lime  estate  in  Dominica  and  this 
island  is  the  greatest  lime-producing  country  on 
the  globe. 

Also  within  easy  reach  of  Roseau  are  the  hot 
springs  of  Wotten  Waven,  or  a  launch  trip  may  be 
taken  to  Soufriere  and  its  crater  harbor,  where 
boiling  streams,  steaming  fumaroles,  and  vast 
sulphur  beds  cover  the  mountainsides  of  a  valley 
indescribably  beautiful.  Another  wonderful  trip 
is  by  horseback  up  the  Roseau  Valley  to  and 
through  the  cool,  shady  forests  of  the  mountains 
to  the  famed  Mountain  Lake,  a  lonely  cairn  fill- 
ing the  crater  of  an  extinct  volcano  among  the 


DOMINICA  79 

perpetual  clouds  on  the  roof  of  the  island.  Still 
another  trip,  but  one  requiring  strength,  en- 
durance, and  strenuous  work,  is  that  to  the 
Boiling  Lake,  a  vast,  active  crater  wherein  is 
a  great  lake  of  bubbling,  boiling  water  and 
worthy  of  being  classed  among  the  wonders  of 
the  world. 

Weeks  might  be  spent  in  Dominica  without  see- 
ing half  its  wonders,  whole  volumes  might  be 
written  on  its  beauties,  its  marvels,  its  resources, 
and  its  people,  for  much  of  its  vast  primeval 
forests  is  still  unknown,  its  mountains  hold  many 
a  phenomenon  undreamed  of  by  the  outside  world, 
its  possibilities  are  almost  limitless,  its  history  is 
fascinating  and  romantic,  and  among  its  people  are 
numbered  the  few  survivors  of  that  once  powerful 
and  warlike  race  which  roamed  the  Caribbees  ere 
Europeans  ever  set  foot  upon  their  shores, — the 
yellow  Caribs.  Once  bloodthirsty,  indomitable 
cannibals,  the  Caribs  fought  Spanish,  French, 
Dutch,  and  British  in  turn,  waging  a  relentless, 
though  hopeless,  struggle  against  terrific  odds  for 
centuries,  until  at  last,  beaten  but  unconquered, 
their  numbers  decimated  by  massacre  and  butch- 
ery, robbed  of  their  lands  and  homes  and  many  of 
them  sold  into  slavery,  they  were  given  tiny  reser- 
vations on  St.  Vincent  and  Dominica.  But  even 
nature  seemed  to  conspire  to  destroy  them,  for 
those  on  St.  Vincent  were  practically  swept  from 


8o 


THE  WEST  INDIES 


existence  in  the  eruption  of  1902,  and  to-day  the 
only  pure-blooded  aborigines  of  the  Antilles  live 
quiet,  peaceful,  law-abiding  lives  at  Salybia  on  the 
windward  coast  of  Dominica. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

MARTINIQUE,   THE  LAND  OF  JOSEPHINE 

FOURTEEN  years  have  passed  since  Morne  Pelee 
burst  forth  and  with  its  blazing  gases,  scalding  mud, 
and  white-hot  lava  bombs,  swept  Saint-Pierre 
from  off  the  map,  and,  in  an  instant,  destroyed 
the  work  and  growth  of  centuries,  together  with 
forty  thousand  human  lives. 

To-day,  where  stood  this  fairest  city  of  the  Carib- 
bees,  only  a  blackened  skeleton  remains,  while, 
above  the  ruin  that  it  wrought,  looms  grim  Pelee, 
menacing,  forbidding,  sinister,  like  some  frowning, 
monstrous  ogre  gloating  over  the  dead  bodies  of 
its  victims. 

But  from  the  passing  ship  one  would  scarce 
realize  that  here  was  enacted  one  of  the  most 
awful  tragedies  the  world  has  ever  known,  for 
nature  has  striven  to  hide  the  scars  of  her  destruc- 
tive rage,  and  brush,  vines,  and  creepers  screen  the 
grisly  evidences  of  Pelee's  fury. 

Once  famed  for  the  life,  gaiety,  wealth,  and 
wickedness  of  its  capital;  noted  far  and  wide  for 
the  beauty  of  its  women ;  raved  over  for  its  scenic 

6  8l 


82  THE  WEST  INDIES 

attractions;  praised  for  its  progress  and  its  splen- 
did roads,  and  known  to  all  as  the  birthplace  of  the 
Empress  Josephine,  Martinique  sprang  into  world- 
wide prominence  on  that  fateful  May  morning  in 
1902.  But  after  the  destruction  of  Saint-Pierre  the 
island  sank  into  oblivion,  its  fame  departed  and 
its  past  was  forgotten,  and  yet,  Martinique  is  as 
beautiful  as  ever;  the  wondrous  scenery  and  lux- 
uriant vegetation  still  remain;  perfect  highways, 
thread  fields,  and  forests,  mountains  and  valleys; 
the  women  are  as  comely  as  of  yore,  and  Fort-de- 
France  is  a  big,  busy,  modern,  attractive  town. 
To  the  world  at  large  Saint-Pierre  was  Martinique, 
and  many  seem  to  think  that  in  the  fearful  erup- 
tion the  entire  island  was  devastated.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  only  a  few  square  miles  were  laid  waste, — 
a  mere  microscopical  portion  of  the  island, — and 
Martinique,  as  a  whole,  still  remains  the  same 
queenly  island  from  whose  shores  the  one-time 
Queen  of  France  went  forth,  to  return,  cast  aside 
and  broken-hearted,  to  rest  forever  in  the  lovely 
tropic  land  of  her  birth. 

Wonderfully  alluring  is  Martinique  from  the 
sea, — not  so  wild,  majestic,  and  awe-inspiring  in  its 
grandeur  as  Dominica,  not  so  lofty  in  its  mountain 
heights, — but  marvelously  varied  in  its  surface, 
luxuriant  and  green  beyond  belief  and  with  a 
strange  indefinable  atmosphere  of  peace,  bright- 
ness, and  promise  peculiar  to  itself. 


MARTINIQUE  83 

Southward  from  the  ruins  of  Saint-Pierre  the 
shore  rises  from  the  sea  in  a  series  of  sharp  ridges, 
their  seaward  faces  sliced  abruptly  off  and  giving  a 
strange,  unique  effect  of  innumerable  sugar-loaf- 
shaped  cliffs  along  the  shore.  Back  towards  the 
central  mountain  range  the  hills  rise  in  great  green 
billows,  in  places  forming  broad  fertile  tablelands, 
in  other  spots  cleft  by  dark  gorges  or  rich  smiling 
valleys,  while,  here  and  there,  steep-sided  towering 
peaks  jut  abruptly  upward  to  the  clouds.  And 
varied  as  the  surface  of  the  land  is  the  verdure 
which  clothes  it  from  surf  to  topmost  wind-swept 
pinnacle.  Dark  with  growth  of  forests  wherein 
ax  has  never  rung  on  wood,  coppery  with  cocoa 
groves,  golden  with  cane  fields,  emerald  with 
bananas,  and  velvety  with  orchards  of  oranges, 
limes,  and  lemons,  the  sea  of  green  stretches  as 
far  as  eye  can  see.  In  deep  sheltered  coves  be- 
tween the  pyramidal  headlands  little  towns  and 
fishing  villages  nestle  by  the  sea,  their  white  build- 
ings and  red  roofs  ever  topped  by  a  gleaming 
church  spire,  and  looking  like  clusters  of  flowers 
amid  the  palms.  Bright-hued  boats  bob  and 
curtsey  to  the  dancing  waves,  more  and  more 
frequent  grow  the  settlements,  farther  and  farther 
from  the  sea  recede  the  mountains,  wider  and  more 
numerous  are  the  cultivated  lands,  until,  beyond  a 
red-cliffed  headland,  the  harbor  of  Fort-de-France 
is  reached.  Upon  the  shores  of  the  great,  almost 


84  THE  WEST  INDIES 

landlocked  bay,  brilliant  in  its  coloring,  flanked 
by  verdure-clad  hills,  and  ancient  age-gray  Fort 
Royal  frowning  from  its  headland,  and  with  a 
background  of  lofty  green  mountains,  Fort-de- 
France  makes  a  wonderfully  pretty  picture. 

There  are  no  really  striking  buildings  in  the 
town, — the  most  notable  being  the  church  with  its 
curious  open  iron-work  spire  designed  to  withstand 
earthquakes  and  hurricanes, — but  there  are  nu- 
merous well-built,  large,  and  prominent  structures, 
and  houses,  shops,  stores,  and  other  buildings  are 
far  superior  in  appearance  to  the  majority  of  the 
towns  in  the  Lesser  Antilles.  The  streets  are 
straight  and  smoothly  paved — albeit  none  too 
cleanly — the  gaudy  costumes  of  the  women  lend 
an  air  of  brightness,  life,  and  vivacity  to  the  scene, 
and  architecture,  colors,  people,  gendarmes,  man- 
ners, and  language  are  unmistakably  and  typically 
French. 

The  Mecca  for  every  visitor  to  Fort-de-France 
is,  of  course,  the  statue  of  the  Empress  Josephine. 
With  her  beautiful  head  turned  towards  her  birth- 
place at  Trois  Islets  across  the  bay,  the  girlish 
queen  stands  carved  in  snowy  marble,  surrounded 
by  a  circle  of  towering  royal  palms  in  the  center  of 
the  broad  savanna.  It  is  a  magnificent  monument 
to  Martinique's  most  famous  daughter, — the 
Creole  maid  who,  born  in  an  overseer's  shack  and 
reared  to  womanhood  in  a  sugar  mill, — for  the 


MARTINIQUE  85 

home  of  her  parents  had  been  destroyed  by  a 
hurricane, — rose  to  the  supreme  height  of  Em- 
press of  the  French  as  wife  of  Napoleon. 

About  the  savanna  are  broad  avenues  shaded  by 
enormous  trees,  and  just  beyond  is  the  secluded 
inner  harbor  behind  the  fort  and  with  docks 
crowded  with  shipping. 

The  Fort-de-France  market  is  large  and  well 
kept  and  should  by  all  means  be  visited,  for  here 
one  may  see  all  the  many  types  that  go  to  make  up 
the  population  of  Martinique,  while  other  notable 
places  of  interest  are  the  Canal  de  Gueydon,  with 
its  cascade  flashing  down  to  the  river  below;  the 
Government  House  on  the  hill  overlooking  the  city 
and  harbor;  old  Fort  Royal,  and  Trois  Islets,  where 
the  ruins  of  Josephine's  birthplace  may  still  be 
seen,  as  well  as  the  mill  wherein  she  dwelt  until 
fifteen  years  of  age,  and  the  church  where  she  was 
baptized  and  which  contains  a  picture  presented 
by  Napoleon  and  a  memorial  tablet  to  her  mother. 

But  to  enjoy  Martinique,  to  gain  an  idea  of  the 
beauties,  luxuriance,  and  scenery  of  the  island,  the 
visitor  should  drive  through  the  interior  by  motor 
car.  The  roads  are  magnificent,  every  town  and 
village  is  connected  with  the  capital  by  beautiful 
highroads  and  wherever  one  goes  he  may  be  sure 
of  the  best  there  is,  of  unbounded  hospitality  and 
of  French  courtesy.  By  wonderful  curves  and 
easy  grades  the  roads  scale  the  mountain  heights ; 


86  THE  WEST  INDIES 

for  mile  after  mile  they  skirt  the  brinks  of  sheer, 
dizzying  precipices;  they  follow  the  banks  of  roar- 
ing mountain  torrents  in  shadowy  gorges;  they 
thread  their  way  through  the  dim,  cool  aisles  of 
primeval  forests  and  they  stretch  across  countless 
acres  of  waving  cane  fields. 

Only  by  such  a  trip  can  one  appreciate  this 
tropic  isle;  only  by  such  means  can  the  visitor 
obtain  an  insight  of  the  size,  the  fertility,  and  the 
scenic  wonders  of  the  West  Indies,  and  only  by 
actually  seeing  them  can  the  stranger  know  what 
the  tropical  forests  are  like  or  realize  the  gigantic 
size  of  the  trees,  the  wonderful  maze  of  lianas,  the 
infinite  variety  of  strange  air  plants  and  orchids, 
and  the  rank,  riotous  growth  of  the  "high  bush. " 

It  is  something  impossible  to  describe,  for  words 
are  inadequate  to  convey  the  remotest  conception 
of  scenes  so  totally  different  from  anything  one 
has  ever  seen.  It  must  be  viewed,  experienced, 
visualized,  to  be  appreciated.  Then,  and  not  till 
then,  will  you  know  the  spell  of  the  tropics,  the 
subtle  charm  these  islands  hold,  the  irresistible 
fascination  they  possess  for  those  who  know  them 
well. 

Seductive,  languorous,  voluptuous  as  her  daugh- 
ters, is  fair  Martinique  and, — unless  care  is  used, — 
as  dangerous,  for,  like  Eden  of  old,  this  Caribbean 
Paradise  is  the  home  of  a  deadly  serpent, — the 
dreaded  fer-de-lance,  the  only  poisonous  snake 


FORT    DE    FRANCE,    MARTINIQUE 


COALING    A    SHIP,    ST.    LUCIA 


MARTINIQUE  87 

found  in  the  Antilles, — with  the  exception  of 
Trinidad, — and  confined  solely  to  Martinique 
and  St.  Lucia,  and  the  greatest  drawback  to  these 
two  charming  isles. 


CHAPTER  IX 

ST.   LUCIA,   AN   ISLAND   STRONGHOLD. 

LAND  is  never  out  of  sight  as  one  sails  up  or  down 
the  Lesser  Antilles,  for  they  are  strung  like  beads 
along  the  edge  of  the  Caribbean  Sea,  and  scarce  a 
score  of  miles  of  water  lies  between  any  two  of  the 
islands. 

Always,  as  one  lovely  spot  is  left  astern,  another 
equally  beautiful  looms  above  the  horizon  ahead 
and,  in  the  days  when  France  and  England 
struggled  for  supremacy  in  the  West  Indies,  this 
proximity  of  the  islands  proved  a  blessing  and  a 
curse  to  the  rival  powers. 

A  French  colony  sandwiched  between  two  Brit- 
ish isles,  or  vice  versa,  afforded  an  opportunity  for 
constant  attacks  and  it  is  little  wonder  that  the 
islands  were  constantly  changing  hands,  or  that 
the  inhabitants  never  knew, — from  day  to  day, — 
to  which  flag  they  owed  allegiance. 

But  on  the  other  hand  the  warring  nations  found 
it  most  convenient  to  be  able  to  establish  naval 
stations  and  garrisons  and  to  build  powerful  forts, 
within  easy  striking  distance  of  their  foes,  and  to 

88 


ST.  LUCIA  89 

maintain  a  constant  espionage  over  their  neigh- 
bors' fleets  and  strongholds. 

Such  was  the  case  in  St.  Lucia,  which  the  British 
fortified  so  strongly  that  it  became  known  as  the 
"Gibraltar  of  the  West  Indies,"  and  from  whose 
northern  coast  old  Admiral  Rodney  watched  the 
powerful  French  fleet  at  anchor  in  the  harbor  of 
Fort-de-France.  Here,  in  the  great  sheltered  bay 
of  Gros  Islets,  the  British  frigates  lay  at  anchor, 
cables  ready  to  slip,  guns  shotted,  and  men  at 
quarters,  until  the  unsuspecting  French  sailed 
forth  from  the  protection  of  Fort  Royal.  Then, 
from  St.  Lucia's  shores,  the  British  followed  in 
pursuit,  and  off  Dominica's  coast  was  fought  the 
terrific  battle  which  made  England  mistress  of  the 
Caribbean. 

But  an  even  more  interesting  spot  than  the 
rendezvous  of  Rodney's  fleet  lies  just  off  the  south- 
ern shore  of  Martinique  and  in  plain  view  of  the 
ship  as  she  leaves  the  birthplace  of  Josephine 
astern. 

This  is  Diamond  Rock,  a  sheer,  towering  pin- 
nacle rising  abruptly  from  the  sea  to  a  height  of 
six  hundred  feet.  It  seems  impossible  that  any 
human  being  could  surmount  this  precipitous 
fang-like  crag,  but  not  only  has  it  been  scaled,  but 
its  summit  actually  has  been  fortified.  This 
happened  in  the  eighteenth  century,  when  a  party 
of  British  bluejackets  clambered  up  the  perpendic- 


90  THE  WEST  INDIES 

ular  sides  of  Diamond  Rock  and,  by  almost  super- 
human efforts,  hoisted  cannons  to  its  top. 

Here,  for  months,  the  handful  of  men  defied  all 
attempts  of  the  French  to  dislodge  them  and  from 
their  lofty  fortress  commanded  the  seas  for  miles 
about,  and  shelled  every  enemy  ship  that  ventured 
within  range.  Only  when  their  provisions  and 
supplies  were  exhausted  did  they  surrender  and, 
in  token  of  their  gallantry  and  their  remarkable 
feat,  the  lonely  sea-girt  pinnacle  was  entered  in 
the  official  lists  of  the  admiralty  as  "H.  M.  S. 
Diamond  Rock" — the  only  rock  in  the  world  to 
become  a  ship  of  war. 

Like  all  the  volcanic  islands  of  the  chain,  St. 
Lucia  is  rugged,  broken,  and  mountainous,  but  in 
comparison  with  Guadeloupe,  Martinique,  and 
Dominica,  it  appears  scarce  more  than  hilly  as  one 
approaches  its  coast. 

But  while  St.  Lucia's  mountains  are  not  as  lofty 
as  those  of  her  northern  sisters,  they  are  far  more 
varied.  Serrated,  jagged,  needle-pointed,  knife- 
edged,  rounded,  conical,  and  precipitous,  they 
appear  as  though  picked  up  at  random  by  some 
giant's  hand  and  tossed  helter-skelter  into  the  sea 
to  form  St.  Lucia. 

Between  the  jumble  of  mountains  and  hills  are 
dark,  deep  canons,  yawning  chasms  and  narrow 
valleys,  while  over  all  is  spread  a  robe  of  forest, 
filled  with  dye  and  cabinet  woods,  spice  trees  and 


ST.  LUCIA  91 

gorgeous  flowers  and  through  which  plunge 
cataracts  and  foaming  mountain  torrents. 

Beautiful  and  fertile  is  the  island,  wonderfully 
picturesque  and  varied  in  its  scenery,  but  St. 
Lucia's  chief  importance  lies  in  its  strongly  fortified 
harbor  with  its  great  coaling  station.  Fittingly 
was  it  called  the  "Gibraltar  of  the  West  Indies," 
for  when  a  ship  steams  between  Vigie  Head  to  the 
north  and  Cocoanut  Headland  to  the  south,  she 
must  run  a  gauntlet  of  massive  forts  and  great 
guns  commanding  a  harbor  entrance  scarce  five 
hundred  yards  in  width.  Two  miles  into  the  land 
the  narrow  strait  leads,  hemmed  in  by  hills  on 
which  is  the  Insane  Hospital, — so  close  to  the 
channel  that  the  inmates'  voices  are  audible  to 
those  on  the  passing  ships, — while  hidden  on  the 
southern  ridge  are  masked  batteries  which  com- 
mand the  land  and  sea  for  miles  in  every  direction. 

Only  by  reducing  these  forts  could  an  enemy 
approach  and,  even  then,  the  entrance  to  St. 
Lucia's  harbor  could  be  barred  by  a  single  sunken 
hulk  or  made  impassable  by  a  few  well-placed 
mines.  At  the  head  of  the  great,  semicircular 
harbor,  to  which  the  fortified  channel  leads,  lies 
Castries,  stretching  along  the  water  front  and 
clambering  up  the  steep,  verdured  hillside  beyond. 
Little  idea  of  the  town  can  be  obtained  from  the 
ship,  however,  for  streets  and  buildings, — even 
many  of  the  roofs  themselves, — are  hidden  behind 


92  THE  WEST  INDIES 

miniature  mountains  of  coal  which  is  piled  every- 
where on  docks,  wharves,  and  along  the  water- 
front streets. 

Deep  water  extends  up  to  the  substantial  stone 
docks  and  here,  for  the  first  time,  the  vessel  is 
moored  to  the  land  and  passengers  may  step 
ashore.  But,  before  doing  so,  the  visitor's  atten- 
tion will  no  doubt  be  attracted,  and  his  interest 
held,  by  the  hurrying,  noisy,  black  women  who,  like 
busy  ants,  pass  ceaselessly  back  and  forth  between 
the  coal  piles  and  the  waiting  ships.  These  are 
the  human  machines  which  load  the  vessels  with 
fuel  from  St.  Lucia's  supply,  and  no  one  has  yet 
been  able  to  devise  any  mechanical  means  of 
coaling  as  rapidly,  as  surely,  and  as  economically 
in  St.  Lucia  as  by  women's  heads.  To  Northern 
minds  it  may  seem  inhuman,  abhorrent,  debasing, 
for  women  and  girls  to  toil  for  hour  after  hour  in 
the  broiling  sun  with  coal-laden  baskets,  weighing 
more  than  an  able-bodied  man  can  lift,  upon  their 
heads;  but  no  pity  need  be  wasted.  The  women 
are  as  happy,  contented,  and  light-hearted  as 
possible;  they  sing,  dance,  and  skylark  while 
waiting  for  their  baskets  to  be  filled  by  the  male 
workers, — whose  task  is  to  shovel  the  coal  into 
the  baskets, — and  they  would  laugh  to  scorn  any 
suggestion  that  they  were  suffering  or  were  even 
working  "too  hard. " 

To  them  it  is  the  easiest  and  most  congenial  of 


ST.  LUCIA  93 

tasks,  a  source  of  good  wages  at  which  they  can 
labor  as  they  see  fit,  and  the  person  who  attempted 
to  introduce  a  mechanical  coaling  device  would 
stand  a  good  chance  of  being  mobbed  by  the  black 
Amazons  for  taking  away  their  means  of  livelihood. 

We  hear  much  of  the  West  Indian  negroes' 
laziness,  but  he  who  sees  the  St.  Lucia  women, — 
and  men  for  that  matter, — toiling  at  coaling  a  ship 
will  never  accuse  them  of  laziness  thereafter.  The 
fact  is,  the  West  Indian  colored  man,  or  woman,  is 
not  lazy,  as  we  know  the  term,  but  they  cannot 
bring  themselves  to  work  regularly.  When  they 
work,  they  work  with  a  will  and  with  tremendous 
energy  and  never  seem  to  tire,  but  they  cannot  be 
bound  to  regular  hours,  they  labor  as  humor  or 
necessity  moves  them,  and,  between  tasks,  enjoy 
to  the  utmost  the  delightful  sensation  of  doing 
absolutely  nothing.  Taken  all  in  all  they  are  a 
good-natured,  happy-go-lucky,  peaceful,  harmless, 
usually  honest  lot  and  childlike  in  their  ideals  and 
temperament.  As  nature  has  done  everything  for 
them,  as  food  may  be  had  almost  for  the  trouble 
of  picking  it,  as  shelter  is  unnecessary  and  cloth- 
ing is  required  only  to  comply  with  the  law,  why, 
after  all,  should  they  wear  themselves  out  by 
working  ? 

The  town  of  Castries  is  not  of  great  interest,  for 
it  is  as  flat  as  a  table  and  there  are  few  attractive 
or  prominent  buildings,  but  the  streets  are  smooth, 


94  THE  WEST  INDIES 

straight,  and  laid  out  at  right  angles,  the  place  is 
clean  and  neat  and,  as  a  whole,  is  far  more  attrac- 
tive and  well  kept  than  the  ports  of  the  other 
British  islands  to  the  north.  Most  of  the  houses 
are  of  two  stories,  with  overhanging  balconies 
formed  by  the  projecting  upper  floors;  they  are  in 
good  repair  and  well  painted  and  there  are  no  ob- 
trusive, ramshackle  huts  save  in  the  outskirts  and 
the  slums  of  Castries. 

Even  these  are  a  vast  improvement  over  dwell- 
ings of  the  same  class  in  the  other  islands  and  many 
of  the  poorest  houses  are  brightly  painted,  well 
built  and  toylike  in  their  attractive  design.  Back 
of  the  town  towers  a  wooded  hill,  known  as  "The 
Morne, "  where,  embowered  amid  shade  trees  and 
palms  are  the  residences  of  the  government  officials, 
prominent  merchants,  and  well-to-do  citizens, 
while  on  the  very  summit  are  the  big,  breezy 
barracks  of  the  garrison. 

In  the  center  of  the  city  is  a  shaded,  pleasant 
park  or  plaza;  a  picturesque  canal,  fringed  by  great 
royal  palms  and  spanned  by  artistic  bridges,  runs 
beside  the  street  in  the  rear  of  the  town  at  the  foot 
of  the  Morne,  and  there  are  several  fine  churches, 
some  excellent  schools,  a  large  market,  and  a 
library  to  be  seen.  A  short  distance  from  the 
docks  is  a  charming  botanic  garden,  beautifully 
situated  on  a  level  patch  of  land  in  the  shelter  of  a 
lofty  hill,  and  while  not  so  large  or  complete  as  the 


ST.  LUCIA  95 

gardens  at  St.  Kitts  or  Dominica,  it  is  even  more 
attractive  in  some  ways. 

But,  as  in  all  the  islands,  the  most  interesting 
sights  are  in  the  outlying  country,  and,  as  St. 
Lucia's  roads  are  excellent  and  public  motor  cars 
and  carriages  are  numerous,  a  drive  should  be 
taken  by  all  means. 

Very  different  from  the  other  islands  is  the  scen- 
ery of  St.  Lucia.  There  are  no  great  cane  fields 
and  huge  sugar  mills  and  few  large  estates  or  ex- 
tensive areas  of  cultivation,  but  everywhere  are 
open  meadows,  rich  valleys,  wooded  mountains, 
green  hills,  and  luxuriant  verdure  scarcely  touched 
by  the  hand  of  man.  Extremely  fertile  and  with 
boundless  agricultural  possibilities,  yet  St.  Lucia 
is  woefully  neglected  and  even  the  natural  re- 
sources are  undeveloped. 

Cabinet  and  dyewoods  abound  in  the  forests  and 
along  the  highways;  cocoa,  spices,  fruit,  limes,  and 
other  valuable  tropical  products  grow  to  perfection, 
and  yet,  were  it  not  for  the  coaling  station,  the 
island  would  be  bankrupt  and  poverty-stricken. 

It  might  be  an  excellent  thing  for  St.  Lucia  if 
the  coaling  station  was  abandoned  and  the  garrison 
removed,  for  then  the  people  would  be  compelled 
to  take  advantage  of  the  blessings  bestowed  upon 
them  by  nature  and  their  island  would  be  devel- 
oped as  it  deserves. 

But  this  will  probably  never  take  place  and  no 


96  THE  WEST  INDIES 

doubt  the  St.  Lucians,  as  a  whole,  will  continue  to 
live, — like  parasites, — upon  the  British  troops  and 
will  toil  and  sweat  at  the  filthy,  black  coal  piles 
rather  than  lead  a  freer,  better,  and  more  prosper- 
ous existence  in  the  fresh  air  of  their  lovely  land. 
It  must  not  be  assumed,  however,  that  St.  Lucia 
does  not  produce  anything.  Many  limes,  a  great 
deal  of  fruit,  and  quantities  of  cocoa  and  spices,  as 
well  as  some  sugar,  are  raised  and  exported  and 
there  are  many  beautiful,  well-cultivated  and  well- 
paying  estates  on  the  island. 

Like  Dominica,  Montserrat,  and  many  other 
volcanic  islands,  St.  Lucia  possesses  an  active, 
though  dormant,  crater  which  is  known  as  the 
"Soufriere,"  but  which,  unlike  many  of  the  others, 
is  within  easy  reach  and  may  be  visited  with  little 
exertion  or  trouble. 

For  over  two  centuries  this  crater  has  been  famed 
for  the  curative  properties  of  its  hot,  impregnated 
waters  and  it  is  well  worth  a  visit,  if  only  to  see  the 
Pitons,  at  the  entrance  to  Soufriere  Bay  near 
whose  shores  the  crater  is  situated. 

Of  all  things  in  St.  Lucia  the  Grand  and  Petit 
Pitons  are  the  most  interesting,  the  most  wonderful, 
and  the  most  noteworthy,  and  nowhere  else  in  the 
West  Indies, — or  in  the  world  for  that  matter, — 
is  there  any  natural  formation  like  them. 

In  twin,  gigantic  cones  they  rise  for  near  three 
thousand  feet  directly  from  the  sea,  their  precipi- 


ST.  LUCIA  97 

tous  sides  clothed  with  plush-like  green,  their  sum- 
mits needle-pointed  and,  despite  the  vulgar  com- 
parison, reminding  one  of  "Donkey's  Ears,"  a 
name  bestowed  upon  them  years  ago  by  mariners. 
To  see  the  Pitons  at  their  best,  one  should  look 
upon  them  as  they  loom  black  and  titanic  against 
the  lurid  western  sky  at  sunset,  or,  better  still,  sail 
close  to  their  bases  in  the  little  coastal  steamer  that 
plies  between  Castries  and  Soufriere.  Thus  viewed 
they  are  sublime  in  their  tremendous  grandeur, 
their  great  height  marvelously  magnified  by  their 
isolation  from  surrounding  hills.  One  feels  awed 
and  overwhelmed  when  gazing  directly  upward  at 
the  sky-piercing  summits  of  these  terrific  monoliths, 
forced,  by  some  fearful  cataclysm  of  the  past  from 
the  ocean's  depths,  to  stand,  forever,  as  titanic 
guardians  of  the  sea-filled  crater  which  forms  the 
bay. 


CHAPTER  X 

BARBADOS : 
THE  TIGHT  LITTLE,    RIGHT  LITTLE   ISLAND 

So  impressive,  rugged,  rankly  luxuriant,  and 
colorful  are  the  Leeward  Islands  that,  by  contrast, 
it  is  almost  a  relief  to  look  upon  Barbados,  low, 
flat,  dull,  and  commonplace  from  a  distance. 
Uninteresting,  unattractive  appears  this  most 
easterly  of  the  Lesser  Antilles  from  the  sea  and  with 
no  hint,  from  its  exterior,  of  the  charms  and  beau- 
ties concealed  within  its  bosom. 

The  town  presents  an  uncompromising  row  of 
buildings  behind  the  docks ;  smoking  factory  chim- 
neys rise  here  and  there;  steamers,  ships,  and  small 
craft  swing  at  anchor ;  a  maze  of  spars  and  rigging 
forms  a  network  of  black  tracery  above  the  water- 
front and,  behind  all,  are  rolling,  dull-green 
hills. 

Aside  from  an  occasional  palm,  the  ardent,  blaz- 
ing sunlight,  the  bright  tints  of  buildings,  and  the 
gaudy  colors  of  the  fishing-boats,  there  is  little 
hint  of  the  tropics  in  the  scene, — save  the  water. 
98 


BARBADOS  99 

And,  looking  upon  this,  the  visitor  forgets  all  else 
and  gazes  spellbound,  fascinated,  bereft  of  words 
to  voice  admiration. 

Against  beaches  of  dazzling  white,  it  laps  in  lazy, 
caressing  waves  of  even  whiter  foam  evolved  from 
a  marvelous,  pellucid  stretch  of  turquoise  so  clear 
and  ethereal  it  seems  to  have  no  body,  no  substance, 
but  rather  a  film  of  transparent  crystal.  Blotched 
with  claret,  mauve,  even  magenta, — the  turquoise 
deepens  to  malachite,  to  cobalt,  to  hyacinthine 
tints,  until  it  merges  in  the  indigo  of  the  open  sea ; 
with  each  ripple,  each  tiny  wave  upon  the  glassy 
surface,  a  tracery  of  lapis-lazuli  or  sapphire. 

Above  it  wheel  the  snowy-breasted  gulls,  drop- 
ping like  meteors  and  scattering  showers  of  pris- 
matic spray  and  flashing  drops  like  priceless  jewels, 
to  rise  on  dripping  pinions  with  breasts  trans- 
formed to  soft  moss-green  by  the  sunlight,  reflected 
upwards  from  the  coral  sand  through  fathoms  of 
liquid  emerald. 

And,  looking  downward  from  the  ship's  rail, 
one  gazes,  not  at  the  surface  of  the  sea  hiding  its 
secrets  from  human  eyes,  but  into  immeasurable 
depths  of  blue-green  atmosphere  through  which 
move  spectral,  half-distinguishable  shapes  gaudily 
riotous  with  color, — strange,  unbelievable  tropic 
fish,  as  brilliant  in  their  rainbow  hues  as  the 
feathered  denizens  of  equatorial  jungles, — veritable 
butterflies  of  the  sea, 


ioo  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Across  this  fairyland  water  one  must  needs 
travel  by  small  boat  to  gain  the  shore,  for  the  ships 
anchor  a  mile  or  more  from  land  in  Carlisle  Bay. 
But  there  is  no  trouble  in  securing  transportation, 
rather  is  it  difficult  to  avoid  being  carried  shore- 
ward piecemeal.  Scarcely  does  the  vessel's  screw 
cease  churning  the  harbor  into  pistachio  suds  ere 
scores  of  negro  boatmen  clamber  up  dangling 
ropes,  or  by  meager  toe  and  finger  hold  on  the 
edges  of  steel  hull-plates,  and,  like  a  crowd  of 
pirates,  take  possession  of  decks;  struggling,  shout- 
ing, chaffing,  and  vilifying  one  another  in  their 
frantic  efforts  to  secure  the  confused  passengers 
as  fares  for  their  craft.  Each  and  every  one,  to 
judge  by  their  statements,  is  the  only  responsible, 
honest,  reliable  boatman  of  Barbados  and  all 
others  are  thieves,  cut-throats,  and  irresponsible 
black  vagabonds.  Each,  according  to  his  own 
story,  is  the  runner  and  representative  of  the  only 
desirable  or  possible  hotel  or  boarding-house  on 
the  island,  and  each  thrusts  greasy  cards,  circu- 
lars, and  folders  of  restaurants,  hostelries,  garages, 
livery  stables,  and  curio  dealers  into  the  hands, 
laps,  or  pockets  of  every  passenger  within  reach. 
But  they  are  a  good-natured,  laughing,  happy  lot 
and  we  can  hardly  blame  them  for  their  insistence, 
when  we  realize  how  keen  is  competition  for  a  live- 
lihood in  Barbados.  Here,  where  two  hundred 
thousand  people  dwell  upon  less  than  two  hundred 


GATHERING    SEA    EGGS,    BARBADOS 


THE    WIND-SWEPT    MAHOGANY   TREES.    BARBADOS 


BARBADOS  101 

square  miles  of  land ;  here  on  an  island  more  densely 
inhabited  than  any  spot  in  the  world, — save  China, 
— there  is  no  place  for  the  indolent,  lackadaisical, 
easy-going,  come-day,  go-day,  God-save-Sunday 
negro  of  the  other  islands.  It  is  a  case  of  work  or 
starve  for  every  man,  woman,  and  child  and,  as  the 
man  of  color  has  an  inborn  horror  of  an  empty 
stomach,  he  chooses  the  lesser  of  the  two  evils  and 
works. 

As  a  matter  of  fact  it  makes  little  difference 
which  one  of  the  boats  one  takes,  which  darkey  one 
chooses  as  porter,  boatman,  or  man  Friday;  their 
charges  are  fixed  by  law,  the  boats  are  all  under 
inspection  by  the  officials,  and  every  man  Jack  of 
the  crowd  is  licensed.  In  case  of  overcharge,  in- 
solence, or  any  other  shortcoming,  a  word  to  the 
black  "Bobby"  at  the  landing-place  will  meet 
with  prompt  and  decisive  action,  for,  by  bitter 
experience,  the  Barbadians  have  learned  that 
white  supremacy  is  the  only  solution  of  the 
racial  problem,  and  that  only  by  keeping  their 
black  brothers'  noses  to  the  grindstone,  can  that 
supremacy  be  maintained. 

Stretching  far  into  the  bay,  parallel  with  the 
waterfront  of  the  town,  and  but  a  few  rods  distant, 
is  a  long  stone  breakwater  or  pier  and,  rounding 
this,  one  comes  into  the  real  harbor  or  ' '  careenage  " 
of  Bridgetown.  Probably  the  first  object  which 
will  attract  the  observant  stranger  is, — or  at  least 


102  THE  WEST  INDIES 

was  when  this  was  written, — a  strange  jumble  of 
slender  objects  projecting  from  the  surface  of  the  ca- 
reenage and  resembling  a  cargo  of  Brobdingnagian 
toothpicks  tossed  helter-skelter  into  the  channel 
and  on  to  an  anchored  barge.  To  reach  the  land- 
ing-steps the  visitor  must  pass  close  to  these 
puzzling  objects  and  then  he  discovers  that  they 
were  placed  here  purposely  and  with  malice  afore- 
thought, for  the  titanic  toothpicks  are  steel  rails 
driven  into  the  bottom  of  the  fairway  in  a  bristling 
chevaux  defrise,  while  those  upon  the  barge  are  fas- 
tened securely  in  place,  like  a  skeleton  roof  with 
projecting  steel  rafters.  Did  you  not  seek  in- 
formation from  your  boatman  you  would  never 
guess  the  real  import  of  this  astonishing  affair, 
for  it  is  Barbados'  sole  and  only  "fortification  "  and 
was  designed  with  the  purpose  of  preventing 
wandering  German  warships,  or  raiders,  from  en- 
tering Bridgetown  and  making  off  with  the  coal 
supply  at  the  upper  end  of  the  careenage. 

Apparently  it  never  occurred  to  the  ingenious 
originator  of  Bridgetown's  "defense"  that  an 
able-bodied  boat's  crew  could  pull  up  the  rails, 
that  a  well-placed  charge  of  dynamite  would  clear 
the  channel  in  an  instant,  that  a  vessel  lying  in  the 
offing  would  have  the  town  at  her  mercy  under  her 
guns,  or  that  nearby  beaches,  the  Royal  Mail  Dock, 
or  even  the  outer  side  of  the  breakwater,  beckoned 
invitingly  for  any  one  to  come  ashore  when  and 


BARBADOS  103 

where  they  saw  fit.  No  indeed;  in  the  minds  of 
Barbados'  preparedness  experts  the  enemy  must 
row  into  the  careenage  after  the  manner  of  all 
law-abiding  visitors  when,  presto!  they  would 
find  their  way  barred  by  the  crisscross  rails  and 
the  narrow  passageway  shut  by  the  "armored" 
barge  hastily  drawn  into  the  gap.  But  all  joking 
aside,  it  is  a  splendid  illustration  of  the  terror  which 
filled  the  West  Indians  when  Germany's  raiders 
cruised  the  Caribbean  in  the  early  days  of  the  war, 
and  it  no  doubt  served  to  quiet  the  fears  of  the 
negroes.  Moreover  it  offered  an  exceptional  op- 
portunity for  some  keen,  shrewd  'Badian  to  unload 
a  lot  of  old  railroad  iron  on  the  government  at  a 
tremendous  profit. 

At  the  landing-place  one  steps  directly  into  the 
streets  of  Barbados'  capital.  The  first  impression 
is  of  a  blinding  glare,  for  the  streets  are  of  white 
coral  limestone,  many  of  the  buildings  are  as  white 
as  if  built  of  snow  and  the  pink,  yellow,  fawn,  and 
pale  blue  tints  of  others  do  little  to  relieve  the 
blast  of  light,  which  seems  to  rise  up  and  strike  one 
with  the  force  of  an  actual  blow.  Along  this  scin- 
tillating roadway  burly  negroes  are  wheeling  great 
hogsheads  of  molasses  and  cases  of  rum  on  two- 
wheeled  "spiders";  half -naked  stevedores  are 
toiling  like  galley  slaves  at  loading  and  unloading 
dozens  of  sloops  and  schooners;  winches  creak  and 
groan;  tackle-blocks  rattle;  steam  derricks  roar; 


104  THE  WEST  INDIES 

drays  and  carts  rattle  and  rumble;  raucous  shouts 
and  cries  fill  the  white-hot  air,  and  one  seems  to 
have  stepped  into  a  pandemonium  peopled  by 
denizens  of  Hades  who  have  brought  their  own 
atmosphere  with  them. 

Close  at  hand  is  a  tiny,  triangular  park  sur- 
rounded by  trees  and  in  the  welcome,  if  meager, 
shade  stand  public  cabs  and  motor  cars,  their  black 
drivers  snoring  on  their  seats  and  the  horses  half- 
heartedly munching  the  Guinea  grass  spread  before 
them  on  the  pavement.  Here  too  are  women 
vending  sugar  cane,  fruits,  bread,  and  sweetmeats; 
here  loll  a  few  unemployed  blacks,  and  here  are 
gathered  dozens  of  tiny  donkey  carts  with  the 
patient  little  beasts  dozing  in  the  shafts  and  with 
long  ears  occasionally  flopping  in  mild  expostu- 
lation at  troublesome  flies. 

To  Barbados  donkeys  are  of  vast  importance 
and  nearly  all  the  transportation  of  the  island 
depends  upon  them.  One  meets  them  everywhere ; 
in  the  busy,  traffic-congested  city  streets;  on  sun- 
baked country  roads  between  tossing,  rustling 
seas  of  cane;  in  the  fields  and  by  the  sea.  It  makes 
little  difference  what  is  to  be  moved,  be  it  grand 
piano,  a  load  of  grass  or  cane,  a  wedding  party  or 
a  coffin,  the  omnipresent  donkey  cart  provides  the 
means  and,  aside  from  occasional  lumbering  ox 
carts  or  mule-drawn  drays,  one  seldom  sees  any 
other  freight  vehicles  on  Barbados'  roads. 


BARBADOS  105 

On  the  farther  side  of  the  little  tree-shaded 
triangle  stands  the  Nelson  monument,  a  well- 
executed,  but  by  no  means  impressive  tribute  to 
England's  greatest  naval  hero,  and  from  this  spot, 
known  as  Trafalgar  Square,  the  various  tramcars 
start  forth  on  their  journeys  to  outlying  districts 
of  the  town.  The  Barbados  tramcar  is  a  unique 
and  interesting  institution.  Mule-drawn,  capable 
of  seating  a  dozen  or  so  passengers,  the  diminutive 
cars  apparently  fulfill  all  of  Barbados'  needs  to  the 
satisfaction  of  the  islanders,  for  they  have  been  in 
use  for  years  and,  despite  frequent  promises,  the 
electric  tram  line  seems  as  visionary  as  ever.  Far 
more  attractive  than  Trafalgar  Square  is  the  great 
embowered  courtyard  of  the  post  office  and  munici- 
pal buildings  opposite.  It  appears  more  like  a 
medieval  fortress  than  a  place  devoted  to  peaceful 
business,  however,  for  antique  cannon  stand  at  the 
gateways  in  the  massive  iron  fence,  the  outer 
windows  are  grim  and  barred,  and  uniformed 
sentries  pace  to  and  fro.  Diagonally  across  the 
street  is  another  little  park,  a  charming  place  of 
flowers  and  palms  and  with  a  huge,  sleepily  tinkling 
fountain  in  its  center.  A  few  blocks  away  is 
Queen's  Park,  a  well-kept,  beautiful  public  garden 
filled  with  tropic  shrubs,  trees,  palms,  and  flowers, 
green  lawns  and  fountains,  but  patronized  only 
when  the  band  plays  there  of  an  afternoon. 

Little  else  of  interest  is  to  be  seen  within  the 


io6  THE  WEST  INDIES 

confines  of  the  town.  There  are  many  large,  but 
not  impressive,  buildings,  but  the  bulk  of  the 
town  is  made  up  of  low,  two-story  structures  and 
narrow,  congested,  busy  streets,  for  an  immense 
amount  of  business  is  transacted  here;  the  stores 
are  innumerable  and  well  stocked,  and  there  is 
little  to  be  had  in  New  York  or  London  that 
cannot  be  found  in  Barbados'  capital. 

But  with  all  due  respect  to  Bridgetown  it  is 
palpitatingly,  unbearably  hot  and  trying  on  the 
eyes,  and  if  one  must  see  the  town  or  patronize  its 
shops,  by  all  means  select  the  early  morning  hours 
for  the  undertaking. 

Outside  of  the  city,  however,  there  are  delightful 
spots,  charming  residential  sections,  tree-shaded 
roads,  and  a  climate  delightful  with  the  cool  breath 
of  the  trade  wind.  Belleville,  with  its  pretty 
villas  and  avenues  of  royal  palms,  is  most  attrac- 
tive, but  the  suburb  known  as  Hastings  is  even 
more  desirable.  Here  one  is  ever  close  to  the 
wonderfully  tinted  sea  and  its  snowy  beaches. 
Beautiful  gardens  and  spacious  grounds  surround 
the  wayside  residences  and  the  immense  parade 
ground  affords  a  wonderful  opportunity  for  out-of- 
door  life  and  sports,  such  as  horseracing,  tennis, 
polo,  cricket,  etc.  Opposite  the  race  course  are  the 
massive  old  barracks,  and  a  short  distance  beyond 
are  the  Hastings  Rocks  with  the  charming  seaside 
park  where  band  concerts  are  given,  and  with  the 


BARBADOS  107 

big  Balmoral  and  Marine  Hotels,  and  innumerable 
smaller  hostel ries,  boarding-houses,  and  furnished 
cottages  for  rent,  all  close  at  hand.  Here  too  is 
the  bathing  par  excellence,  and  bathing  in  Bar- 
bados is  perhaps  the  island's  greatest  attraction. 

But  Bridgetown  and  its  environs  are  not  Bar- 
bados by  any  means.  The  low,  monotonous  west- 
ern coast  is  as  different  from  the  rugged,  lofty 
"Scotland"  district  of  the  windward  coast  as  if  on 
a  separate  island,  and  throughout  the  interior  are 
places  of  interest,  beauty,  and  attractiveness. 

When  one  has  seen  the  whole  of  Barbados,  has 
learned  its  charms,  has  bathed  in  its  tepid  waters, 
has  become  acquainted  with  its  people,  and  has 
partaken  of  their  unbounded  hospitality,  then, 
indeed,  can  one  realize  why  the  'Badians  love  their 
home  above  all  other  spots,  why  they  have  nick- 
named it  "Little  England"  and  why  the  "Bims," 
as  they  are  sometimes  called,  vow  that  no  place 
in  all  the  world  can  compare  with  their  "tight 
little,  right  little  island. " 

Everywhere  on  Barbados  stretch  perfect  roads, 
like  broad  white  ribbons  across  hills  and  dales  of 
green,  and,  for  those  who  prefer  a  railway  journey 
to  an  automobile  drive,  there  is  the  "Barbados 
Light  Railway,"  a  fascinatingly  toylike  railroad 
that  carries  one  leisurely  from  Bridgetown  to 
Bathsheba  across  the  island  with  frequent  stops 
at  plantations  and  tiny  hamlets.  Well  and  most 


io8  THE  WEST  INDIES 

appropriately  named  is  this  railroad,  for  every- 
thing about  it  is  "light. "  The  engineer,  standing 
beside  his  "iron  steed,"  appears  a  veritable  giant, 
the  cars,  or  rather  "coaches,"  might  serve  for 
children's  play-houses;  the  traffic  is  light  and  the 
train  crews  seem  to  consider  their  "runs"  in  the 
light  of  picnics  rather  than  as  serious  affairs.  But 
the  strange  little  road  has  distinct  advantages,  even 
if  its  express  trains  seldom  exceed  fifteen  miles  an 
hour.  Grades  are  of  no  importance  and  the  road 
rambles  up  and  down  hill  in  a  most  casual  manner, 
the  puffing  little  locomotive  struggling  laboriously 
up  each  rise,  to  give  a  triumphant  snort  and  coast 
blithely  down  the  slope  beyond.  In  case  the  train 
is  derailed,  as  not  infrequently  happens,  train- 
men and  passengers  soon  lift  it  bodily  on  to  the 
"irons"  once  more  and  resume  their  interrupted 
journey  as  a  matter  of  course.  Often,  at  some 
open,  shed-like  station,  a  colored  lad  rushes  breath- 
lessly up  and  informs  the  conductor  that  passen- 
gers are  coming,  and  the  train  obligingly  waits  for 
their  arrival.  Then  handshakings  and  good-byes 
are  in  order,  the  passengers  clamber  leisurely  into 
the  cars,  the  conductor  catches  sight  of  some 
friend  and  joins  him  in  the  shadow  of  the  station 
for  a  last  word  of  gossip  and  a  parting  drink.  The 
train  at  last  crawls  away,  only  to  stop  and  back 
deliberately  into  the  station  again  to  accommodate 
some  delayed  friends  of  the  passengers  who  are 


BARBADOS  109 

anxious  to  give  them  a  last  message  or  commission 
to  friends  or  shops  in  town.  To  the  stranger, 
anxious  to  make  use  of  each  fleeting  moment  of  his 
time,  the  Barbados  railway  is  vexatious  in  the 
extreme,  but  it  can't  be  hurried  and  one  may  ob- 
tain a  far  better  idea  of  the  island  during  the  train's 
snail-like  progress  from  coast  to  coast  than  if  it 
tore  across  country  like  our  own  expresses. 

But  if  you  are  wise  you  will  see  Barbados  from  a 
motor  car  and  traverse  its  length  and  breadth  by 
highway,  for  the  greater  part  of  the  railroad  lies 
through  the  most  uninteresting  of  the  island's 
scenery. 

That  time-worn  adage,  "As  the  twig  is  bent  so 
the  tree  is  inclined,"  is  admirably  illustrated  and  its 
truth  convincingly  demonstrated  in  Barbados,  for 
nearly  every  tree  upon  the  island  is  inclined  ex- 
actly as  its  first  tender  twigs  were  bent.  Along  the 
white  coral  beaches  long  rows  of  cocoa  palms  edge 
the  surf,  their  lank  trunks  twisted  and  contorted  in 
a  myriad  of  forms,  but  each  and  every  one  bent 
in  the  same  general  direction.  About  plantation 
houses  and  sugar  mills,  or  standing  in  little  knots 
or  copses  on  the  hillsides,  the  mahogany  trees 
crouch  one-sidedly,  all  with  heads  turned,  like 
green-clad  hosts  whose  shoulders  are  bowed  by 
unseen  burdens.  Beside  the  glaring  roads  the 
mile-long  rows  of  majestic  rotal  palms  raise  their 
heights,  like  granite  monoliths  crowned  with 


i  io  THE  WEST  INDIES 

emerald  plumes,  and  ever  their  feathery  banners 
stream  towards  the  setting  sun.  Lowliest  shrub, 
stoutest  tree,  or  loftiest  palm  yields  to  the  cease- 
less, life-giving  trade  wind  that  sweeps,  day  after 
day,  year  after  year,  from  the  broad  Atlantic  and 
transforms  the  broad  acres  of  ribbon-leaved  cane 
into  restless,  billowy,  undulating  seas  of  tender 
green.  And  to  the  trade  wind,  that  forces  all 
growing  things  to  bend  ever  towards  the  west, 
Barbados  owes  its  wonderfully  perfect  climate,  for 
despite  the  blazing  tropic  sun,  the  blinding  roads 
and  the  woeful  lack  of  shade,  Barbados,  outside  of 
the  town,  is  seldom  uncomfortably  warm,  never 
prostratingly  humid,  and  ever  with  the  healthy 
tang  of  the  salt  sea  in  the  air. 

Everywhere,  as  one  drives  through  Barbados, 
and  more  conspicuous  than  all  else  upon  the  land- 
scape, are  the  windmills;  great  stone  and  wooden 
towers  whose  motionless  arms  stand,  like  gaunt 
crosses,  against  the  fathomless  blue  sky,  or  revolve, 
slowly,  indolently,  impressively,  like  giants  aware 
of  their  power  and  exerting  but  a  tithe  of  their 
strength  to  crush  the  gold  and  purple  cane  within 
their  vitals  and  set  free  the  wealth  of  cloying  juice 
upon  which  the  island  depends  for  existence. 
Here  and  there  the  towers  stand  stark,  forlorn,  and 
helpless,  like  derelict  ships  bereft  of  sails,  for  the 
wind,  which  served  so  well  the  planter  barons  of 
old,  is  inadequate  for  present-day  needs,  and  many 


A  BARBADOS  ROAD 


BARBADOS  LANDSCAPE 


BARBADOS  in 

a  huge  steam  mill  obtrudes  its  unlovely,  prosaic 
chimneys,  with  smoke-blackened  summits  over- 
topping even  the  tallest  royal  palms. 

But  everything  must  give  way  to  utility  and 
revenue  in  aland  as  densely  inhabited  as  Barbados, 
and  the  wonder  is  that  any  spots  of  virgin  beauty 
remain  unspoiled  by  cultivation  or  habitations. 
Strange  as  it  may  seem  there  is  yet  a  stretch  of  the 
original  forest  growth  in  Barbados,  an  area  known 
as  St.  John's  Wood,  in  the  Scotland  district  near 
the  eastern  coast  and,  stranger  yet,  troops  of  wild 
monkeys,  opossums,  and  parrots  make  this  spot 
their  home  and  play  havoc  with  the  garden  truck 
of  nearby  estates.  High,  rugged,  and  bold  is  this 
windward  coast,  with  great  cliffs  rising  abruptly 
from  beating  Atlantic  surges,  with  strange  fantas- 
tic pinnacles  and  grotesque  rock  forms  hewn  by  the 
winds  and  waves  of  countless  ages  from  the  solid 
limestone,  with  smooth  sand  beaches  hemmed  in 
by  jagged  reefs,  with  grassy  flower-starred  upland 
downs  and  brush-filled  gullies.  Well  was  it 
named  Scotland  and,  to  make  the  resemblance 
still  more  striking,  upon  the  summit  of  a  wind- 
swept cliff  there  stands  a  little  church  which,  save 
for  the  palms  and  Bougainvillea  about  it,  might 
well  be  some  highland  kirk.  This  is  old  St. 
John's  church  and  in  its  quaint  old-world  grave- 
yard, on  the  brink  of  the  precipice,  lies  the  last  of 
the  Christian  Kings  of  Greece,  one  Ferdinando 


H2  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Paleologus,  who,  exiled  from  his  native  land, 
settled  down  in  Little  England  and,  as  stated  on 
his  tombstone,  was  a  churchwarden  of  the  parish 
from  1655-66  and  a  vestryman  for  twenty  years. 
He  died  on  October  3,  1678,  to  rest  for  ever  in  this 
old  churchyard  of  his  adopted  land. 

In  this  Scotland  district  is  the  highest  land  in 
Barbados,  Mount  Hillaby,  with  its  summit  1104 
feet  above  the  breaking  surf  and  affording  the 
finest  view  in  the  island.  In  this  district  also  are 
the  petroleum  and  Manjak  deposits,  the  former  of 
little  or  no  value,  the  latter  having  been  worked 
sporadically  for  many  years.  Near  at  hand  also 
are  the  clay  beds  and  potteries,  from  which  come 
the  water  jars  and  other  earthenware  utensils 
which  are  sold  in  Bridgetown  and  are  in  universal 
use  throughout  the  island. 

But  aside  from  its  lovely  views,  its  exhilarating 
breezes  and  its  wild,  wave-beaten  coast,  there  are 
few  interests  or  attractions  in  this  portion  of 
Barbados,  and  a  short  visit  will  suffice. 

Everywhere  in  Barbados  the  long,  uninterrupted 
rule  of  Britain  is  in  evidence.  There  is  none  of  the 
cosmopolitan  or  polyglot  in  speech,  manners,  cus- 
toms, race,  or  architecture,  which  is  so  typical  of 
the  other  islands;  no  hint  of  French,  Dutch,  or 
Spanish  occupancy,  for  the  island  has  been  strictly 
English  from  the  date  of  its  first  settlement  in 
1625  and  many  of  its  buildings  and  its  churches 


BARBADOS  113 

seem  transported  bodily  from  the  mother  country. 
Such  is  Codrington  College,  a  West  Indian  Oxford 
established  in  1710  and  connected  with  Durham 
College  in  England.  Built  in  the  heavy  style  of 
the  Georgian  period,  within  a  grove  of  mahogany 
trees,  and  with  its  typically  English  students 
playing  cricket  on  the  "pitch,"  this  two-century- 
old  college  seems  strangely  out  of  place  and  the 
visitor  can  scarce  believe  he  is  still  within  the 
tropics.  So  too,  Farley  Hall,  about  fifteen  miles 
from  Bridgetown,  is  a  solid,  dignified  old  British 
mansion,  once  the  residence  of  Sir  Graham  Briggs, 
a  West  Indian  baronet,  and  worthy  of  a  visit  on 
account  of  the  art  treasures  it  contains  and  the 
scenery  en  route. 

Gun  Hill,  about  six  miles  from  the  capital,  is 
another  spot  which  should  be  visited,  for  its  sum- 
mit offers  a  superb  view  of  the  greater  part  of  the 
island,  and  half-way  up  its  slopes  is  a  gigantic 
stone  lion  carved  from  the  solid  rock  by  a  Major 
Wilkinson  who  was  stationed  here  when  the  hill 
was  garrisoned.  It  has  been  likened  to  the  Lion 
of  Lucerne,  but  one  must  possess  a  most  vivid 
imagination  to  see  the  resemblance,  for  the  Bar- 
bados effigy  appears  as  if  afflicted  with  elephantia- 
sis and  reminds  one  more  of  a  peevish  kitten 
playing  with  a  catnip  ball,  than  of  the  majestic 
British  lion  holding  the  world  beneath  its  paw. 
Allowances  must  be  made  for  the  amateurish  skill 


114  THE  WEST  INDIES 

of  its  creator  and  the  medium  he  had  at  his  com- 
mand, however,  and,  considering  this,  it  was  no 
mean  achievement  to  have  chipped  away  the  cliff 
to  leave  the  massive  stone  monument  standing 
forth  above  the  greenery  of  the  hillside. 

Looking  down  upon  the  widespread  cane  fields 
from  such  a  spot  as  Gun  Hill  one  searches  in  vain 
for  a  hint  of  sparkling  lake  or  glistening  stream,  and 
then  it  dawns  suddenly  upon  the  stranger,  that 
nowhere  on  the  island  has  pond,  brook,  or  river 
been  seen.  The  fact  is,  there  are  no  streams  in 
Barbados,  or  at  least  not  in  sight,  for  the  island's 
rivers  flow  underground  through  subterranean 
caverns  to  the  sea. 

From  these  Bridgetown  obtains  its  ample  and 
pure  water  supply  and  over  one  hundred  miles  of 
pipes  carry  the  water  from  the  unseen,  unsuspected 
rivers  to  the  towns.  Near  Gun  Hill  one  may 
descend  to  one  of  the  sources  of  this  unique  water 
system.  This  spot,  known  as  Cole's  Cave,  is  a 
deep  wooded  ravine  from  which  leads  an  enormous 
cavern  of  unknown  extent  and  through  which 
flows  a  Stygian  river  which  never  sees  the  sun. 
Hung  with  stalactites,  wonderful  with  strange 
festoons  and  veil-like  drapery  of  creamy,  translu- 
cent dripstone,  this  cavern  might  be  made  one  of 
Barbados'  greatest  attractions,  but  it  has  never 
been  completely  explored,  although  known  to 
extend  many  miles,  and  there  are  innumera- 


BARBADOS  115 

ble  other  caves  fully  as  large  and  even  less 
known. 

Indeed,  much  of  Barbados  is  honeycombed  with 
caverns,  some  of  which  may  rival  Mammoth  Cave 
or  the  Luray  Caverns  in  size  and  beauty,  and  yet 
no  one  has  ever  seen  fit  to  investigate  or  exploit 
them. 

Perchance,  as  you  drive  about  the  island,  espe- 
cially on  the  windward  coast,  your  attention  may 
be  attracted  to  dejected,  listless,  ragged  men 
and  women  who  labor  half-heartedly  in  their  tiny 
garden  plots,  or  loll  about  the  doors  of  their  hovels, 
and  who  would  be  passed  by  without  a  second 
glance,  were  it  not  for  the  fact  that  their  light  hair 
and  fair  skins  give  no  hint  of  negro  blood.  It 
seems  strange  indeed  to  find  whites  on  a  social 
plane  with  the  lowliest  negroes  in  the  West  Indies, 
and  the  question  at  once  arises  as  to  who  these 
people  are,  what  their  race,  and  why  they  are  in 
such  straits.  Their  story  is  a  sad  one,  their  his- 
tory almost  incredible,  and  their  present  plight 
pitiable.  The  fact  is  they  are  white, — untainted 
by  negro  blood, — the  lowest,  most  worthless,  most 
poverty-stricken  of  Barbadians,  known  locally  as 
"Red  Legs,"  and  despised  by  both  negroes  and  the 
well-to-do  whites,  for  incredible  as  it  may  seem, 
their  ancestors  were  slaves.  Victims  of  the  bloody 
days  of  Cromwell's  time  hundreds  of  captive  Irish, 
Scotch,  and  English  men  and  women  were  piled  in 


u6  THE  WEST  INDIES 

the  noisome,  stinking  holds  of  convict  ships  and 
transported  to  Barbados,  where,  for  the  price  of 
1500  pounds  of  sugar  per  head,  the  survivors  of  the 
awful  voyage  were  sold  as  slaves  to  the  planters. 
In  the  islands  were  sympathizers  of  both  the  war- 
ring factions  in  England  and,  no  doubt,  many  of 
the  unfortunate ' '  Red  Legs  "  (so  called  as  they  were 
wearers  of  kilts  with  bare  knees)  fell  into  kindly 
hands,  for  many  of  them  rose  to  affluence  as  plant- 
ers, but  the  lot  of  others  was  pitiful.  Branded 
and  mutilated  like  cattle,  they  were  treated  with 
far  less  humanity  and  more  brutality  than  their 
African  fellows  and,  unable  to  withstand  the  hard 
field  labors  beneath  the  blistering  tropic  sun,  they 
succumbed  rapidly.  But  many  survived  and, 
after  being  freed  from  bondage,  lived  on,  degraded, 
hopeless,  spineless  creatures,  but  ever  maintaining 
their  purity  of  race  and  retaining  the  good  old 
family  names  of  their  ancestors.  Two  hundred 
years  and  more  have  passed,  since  white  slaves 
were  held  in  Barbados,  and  yet,  to  this  day,  the 
"Red  Legs"  remain,  living  examples  of  a  disgrace- 
ful episode  in  Britain's  history  and  a  blotch  upon 
her  escutcheon. 

And  speaking  of  Barbados'  past,  perhaps  no 
event  is  of  greater  interest — to  Americans  at  least 
— than  the  visit  paid  to  the  island  by  George 
Washington.  This  happened  in  the  winter  of 
1751-52,  when  Washington  was  a  major  in  the 


BARBADOS  117 

British  Colonial  army,  and,  for  the  sake  of  his 
brother's  health,  he  made  his  first  and  only  ocean 
voyage.  Lawrence  Washington  was  a  victim  of 
tuberculosis  and  Barbados'  fame  as  a  health  resort 
led  the  brothers  to  seek  the  island's  shores  in  the 
vain  hope  of  curing  the  dread  disease.  While  on 
the  island  our  future  first  president  contracted  a 
mild  case  of  smallpox  which  confined  him  to  his 
bed  from  November  17,  1751 — only  two  weeks 
after  his  arrival — until  December  I2th.  As  he 
sailed  for  home  on  December  22d,  he  had  barely 
three  weeks  to  devote  to  seeing  the  island,  but  he 
and  his  brother  were  royally  entertained  during 
their  brief  stay  in  Barbados  and  great  hospitality 
was  shown  them, — especially  by  the  British  army 
and  navy  officers,  for  Lawrence  had  won  fame  in 
the  battles  of  Carthagena  and  the  Spanish  Main. 
Just  where  the  two  brothers  dwelt,  while  in  Bar- 
bados, seems  uncertain,  but,  judging  by  the  de- 
scription in  George  Washington's  journal,  it  was 
in  the  vicinity  of  Hastings  and  close  to  the  sea. 

Another  illustrious  visitor  to  Barbados'  shores 
was  the  one-armed  idol  of  the  British  navy, — 
Admiral  Lord  Nelson.  But  the  hero  of  Trafalgar 
was  in  "Little  England"  by  necessity  and  not  by 
choice  and  he  chafed  and  fretted  constantly.  In 
fact  he  was  wont  to  speak  of  the  island  as  the 
"Barbarous"  instead  of  Barbados,  for,  gallant 
sea-fighter  as  he  was,  he  had  been  boarded  and 


ii8  THE  WEST  INDIES 

conquered  by  one  against  whom  all  his  fleet  and 
guns  were  powerless, — the  pirate  Cupid, — and  his 
heart  was  held  for  ransom  by  the  widow  Nisbet 
in  distant  Nevis. 

But  as  a  whole  Barbados'  history  is  most  unin- 
teresting and  commonplace,  for  what  struggles 
there  were  took  place  between  men  of  one  race. 
Foreign  foe  has  never  invaded  the  island  and,  save 
for  the  bitter  quarrels  between  Jamestown  and 
Holetown  men  in  the  early  days,  occasional  negro 
uprisings,  and  a  hurricane  now  and  then,  there  has 
been  little  of  the  stirring  times  which  add  so  much 
of  interest  and  romance  to  the  other  islands.  But 
there  is  one  date  which  will  ever  live  in  the  annals 
of  Barbados, — the  day  when  the  sun  stood  still. 
It  was  in  1812,  that  on  a  Sunday  morning  in  May, 
the  Barbadians  awoke  to  find  no  sun  rising  above 
the  eastern  sea,  but  instead,  the  darkness  of  mid- 
night overspread  ocean  and  land.  At  first  dumb- 
founded, then  terror-stricken,  the  people  gathered 
in  knots  and  groups,  shivering  as  with  cold,  cower- 
ing together  for  protection  from  some  unknown 
awful  doom,  whining,  weeping,  wailing,  praying, 
for,  to  their  minds,  the  end  of  the  world  had 
come. 

And,  to  add  to  their  overwhelming  terror,  a  fine, 
impalpable,  unseen  something  filled  the  black 
air,  choking,  blinding,  sifting  through  every  crack 
and  crevice  and  even  through  garments,  and 


BARBADOS  119 

covering  houses,  streets,  lands,  trees,  people, 
everything,  with  a  thick,  deadening,  silencing 
shroud. 

As  the  day  wore  on  and  still  no  glimmer  of  light 
broke  through  the  awful  blackness,  overwrought 
nerves  gave  way,  superstitious  negroes  went  rav- 
ing mad,  and,  for  hour  after  hour,  the  sounds  of 
human  misery,  a  babel  of  lamentations,  the  shouts 
of  exhorting  preachers,  the  fretful  cries  of  ^chil- 
dren, the  incoherent  babbling  of  those  driven  in- 
sane by  the  awful  strain,  were  the  only  sounds 
that  rent  the  all-pervading,  suffocating  pall  of 
black. 

The  hour  of  noon  passed  and  still  inky  darkness 
wrapped  Barbados  in  its  folds  until,  at  last,  in  the 
early  afternoon,  a  spot  of  light  showed  in  the  west. 
Rapidly  it  grew  and,  ere  sundown,  the  clear,  bright, 
blessed  sunlight  streamed  over  land  and  sea,  and 
marvelous  was  the  scene  revealed  to  the  still 
trembling,  wondering  Barbadians. 

No  sign  of  green,  no  hint  of  color,  no  gleam  of 
white  road  was  visible.  From  highest  hilltop  to 
whispering  surf,  all  was  one  uniform  expanse  of 
ashen  gray.  Not  until  a  sailing  vessel  cast  anchor 
in  Carlisle  Bay  and  brought  the  news  of  the  awful 
eruption  of  St.  Vincent's  Soufriere  did  the  Bar- 
badians know  the  cause  of  the  terrifying  phe- 
nomenon. Marvelous  as  it  may  seem,  the  force 
of  the  volcano's  outburst  had  hurled  hundreds 


I2O 


THE  WEST  INDIES 


of  thousands  of  tons  of  dust  directly  against  the 
full  force  of  the  trade  wind,  to  darken  the  sky,  blot 
out  the  sun,  and  fall  upon  Barbados  one  hundred 
miles  distant. 


CHAPTER  XI 

ST.   VINCENT,   A  NEGLECTED   EDEN 

TERRIFIC  as  was  the  eruption,  widespread  as  was 
the  destruction,  and  great  as  was  the  loss  of  life 
during  Soufriere's  outburst  in  1812,  it  was  insig- 
nificant as  compared  to  that  of  1902.  Coincident 
with  the  eruption  of  Mount  Pelee  in  Martinique, 
St.  Vincent's  Soufriere  awoke  from  its  ninety-year 
sleep  and  with  redoubled  fury  devastated  over 
one  third  of  the  island  and  wiped  out  over  two 
thousand  lives.  Great  estates  were  buried  scores 
of  feet  beneath  seas  of  red-hot  mud;  vast  forests 
were  utterly  destroyed;  whole  mountaintops  were 
blown  into  space;  broad  roaring  rivers  were  turned 
to  steam  in  an  instant  and  their  beds  left  dry  and 
bare;  houses,  mills,  and  towns,  with  all  their  in- 
habitants, were  overwhelmed  with  ashes,  mud,  and 
laval  bombs;  fires  lit  the  black  chaos  with  their 
awful  glare,  and  the  ground  rocked,  shook,  and 
swayed  to  the  deafening  detonations  and  earth- 
quake shocks.  The  land,  in  places,  sank;  the 
sea  broke  in  tumultuous  waves  against  shores  that 
had  been  mountainsides,  and  the  ocean  swept 


122  THE  WEST  INDIES 

above  villages  forty  feet  beneath  its  storm-lashed 
surface. 

To-day,  as  one  sails  past  the  northern  shores 
of  St.  Vincent,  one  looks  upon  a  waste  scarce 
less  gray  and  barren  than  when  the  volcano  had 
exhausted  its  infernal  wrath  fourteen  years 
ago. 

Here  and  there,  bushes,  vines,  and  shrubs  have 
struggled  upward  through  the  mud  and  cinders  and 
have  done  their  best  to  hide  the  dead,  mutilated, 
ghastly  land.  A  few  trees,  whose  life  was  not 
quite  extinguished,  have  again  donned  robes  of 
green,  but  everywhere  stand  the  gaunt,  naked 
skeletons  of  once  luxuriant  forests,  the  blackened, 
deserted  wrecks  of  mills,  and  the  yawning  chasms, 
washed  by  the  rains  of  years,  in  the  caked  black 
mud  that  overwhelmed  hill  and  valley,  field  and 
forest. 

But  it  is  only  a  question  of  time  ere  thqvjungle 
will  come  again  into  its  own,  ere  nature  will  clothe 
the  forbidding  waste  with  a  mantle  of  verdure,  ere 
well-tilled  gardens  and  cultivated  fields  will  take 
the  place  of  cinder-beds  and  mud-flows,  ere  moun- 
tain streams  will  tumble  through  long-forgotten, 
mud-choked  courses  to  the  sea.  Then  man,  for- 
getful of  the  past,  unmindful  of  the  lesson  taught, 
will  once  more  dwell  above  this  vast  graveyard 
of  his  fellows,  will  rebuild  mills,  houses,  villages, 
above  the  ruins  of  those  destroyed,  to  meet,  per- 


ST.  VINCENT  123 

haps,  the  same  fate  as  those  who  lie  forever  buried 
under  countless  tons  of  ashes  and  of  mud. 

It  is  indeed  a  pleasant  change  from  the  sad, 
corpse-like  northern  district  to  the  serene,  green, 
luxuriant  mountainsides,  the  smiling  valleys,  and 
the  palm-fringed  shores  beyond  the  area  of  destruc- 
tion. Few  islands  are  lovelier  than  St.  Vincent, 
but  where  there  is  such  a  plethora  of  beauty  it  is 
difficult  to  make  comparisons  and,  where  nature 
has  been  so  lavish  as  in  the  Antilles,  words  become 
inadequate.  Every  island  is  distinct  from  its 
fellows,  each  has  attractions,  charms,  an  individ- 
uality, all  its  own,  and  yet  'tis  impossible,  by  mere 
description,  to  visualize  their  differences  or  do 
justice  to  their  wondrous  scenery. 

We  may  say  they  are  rugged,  mountainous, 
marvelous  with  color;  richly  luxuriant,  fascinat- 
ingly tropical,  glowingly  beautiful;  but  these 
terms  apply  with  equal  truth  to  them  all.  Only  by 
seeing  them,  by  knowing  them,  can  one  realize 
how  pitiful  are  all  attempts  to  picture  them  on 
paper,  to  convey  even  a  remote  idea  of  their 
appearance  to  those  unfortunates  who  have  never 
gazed  across  the  blue  waters  of  the  Caribbean 
upon  these  island  gems. 

Guadeloupe  is  stupendous  in  its  bulk,  frowning 
and  gloomy;  Dominica  is  sublime  in  its  wild  un- 
touched forests,  its  awful  precipices,  and  its  mile- 
high  mountains;  Martinique  is  queenly  in  it? 


124  THE  WEST  INDIES 

dignified,  cloud-crowned  mountains  and  its  vast 
fair  valleys;  but  St.  Vincent  appears  as  if  some 
master  hand  had  selected  the  best  and  most  beauti- 
ful portions  of  all  these  and  had  combined  them 
with  consummate  skill  to  form  a  perfect  whole. 

It  is  not  so  lofty  as  its  northern  sisters, — the 
highest  peak,  Morne  Agarou,  rising  to  a  bare 
four  thousand  feet, — and  it  is  not  so  large, — only 
eighteen  miles  in  length  by  eleven  miles  wide, — 
but  within  its  area  is  an  array  of  mountains,  valleys, 
hills,  and  plains  such  as  would  be  a  credit  to  a 
good-sized  continent. 

Of  all  the  islands  of  any  size  or  importance  St. 
Vincent  is  the  only  one  which  cannot  be  reached 
by  direct  steamers  from  New  York,  a  curious  situa- 
tion brought  about  by  competition  and  jealousy, 
for  in  the  shuffle  by  which  the  various  islands  were 
allotted  to  the  rival  companies  St.  Vincent  was  left 
out  in  the  cold.  Fearing  to  make  it  a  port  of  call 
for  dread  of  the  others  retaliating  and  infringing 
on  their  monopoly  of  other  islands,  each  line 
avoids  St.  Vincent  as  though  'twere  plague-ridden 
and,  as  a  result,  the  island  stands  isolated, — a 
neglected  Eden, — only  in  touch  with  the  outside 
world  through  small  boats  and  the  intercolonial 
steamers. 

But,  despite  this,  St.  Vincent  holds  much  of 
interest;  scenery  of  indescribable  beauty  abounds, 
and  the  climate  is  both  healthy  and  delightful. 


ST.  VINCENT  125 

Kingstown  is  the  capital, — the  inhabitants  are 
most  punctilious  as  to  the  "w"  in  the  name, — and 
a  pretty,  well-kept,  tidy  little  town  it  is,  in  a  setting 
unsurpassed.  To  the  north  rises  a  frowning 
headland,  capped  by  a  crumbling  age-gray  fort; 
in  the  background,  soft  cultivated  valleys  and 
verdured  hills  stretch  back  in  a  vast  green  amphi- 
theater to  the  blue  and  misty  mountains,  and 
above  the  lazy  surf,  that  breaks  upon  a  sandy 
crescent  beach,  stands  the  red-roofed  town,  shim- 
mering like  burnished  metal  in  the  sun.  Pic- 
turesque, quaint,  fascinating  as  it  is,  yet  there  is 
little  of  real  interest  in  Kingstown  itself,  but  all 
about  are  splendid  roads  through  the  loveliest  of 
scenes,  and  within  a  mile  of  the  town  is  the  famous 
Botanic  Garden,  established  in  1763  and  the  first 
of  its  kind  in  America. 

Well  may  this  garden  be  called  the  cradle  of 
tropical  agriculture  in  the  New  World,  for  here, 
for  the  first  time,  were  introduced  and  grown  the 
fruits,  vegetables,  .spices,  and  other  tropical  plants 
which  to-day  form  the  principal  products  of  the 
West  Indies  and  much  of  the  two  Americas  in 
addition. 

To  this  garden  in  St.  Vincent,  Captain  Bligh  of 
the  Bounty  brought  the  first  bread-fruit  plants 
from  the  South  Pacific.  It  was  here  that  nutmegs 
and  cloves  were  first  introduced  to  America  and, 
despite  the  larger  and  more  ambitious  gardens  of 


126  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Dominica,  Trinidad,  and  other  places,  St.  Vincent's 
garden  still  leads  them  all  in  the  variety  and  per- 
fection of  its  flora,  in  its  beauty,  and,  most  of  all, 
in  the  important  part  it  has  played  in  the  develop- 
ment of  tropical  agriculture. 

If  one  wishes  to  visit  the  ruined  district  in  the 
vicinity  of  Soufriere,  a  boat  may  be  taken  from 
Kingstown  to  Chateau  Belaire,  where  guides  may 
be  obtained.  But  there  is  little  to  see :  it  is  a  dis- 
mal, depressing  scene,  and  it  is  much  more  enjoy- 
able to  while  away  one's  time  by  driving  through 
the  country  about  Kingstown,  visiting  the  numer- 
ous estates,  or  exploring  the  half-ruined  forts 

To-day  they  are  used  only  as  signal  stations ;  the 
ancient  cannons  stare  mute  and  rust-covered  from 
the  vine-choked  embrasures,  and  weeds,  grass,  and 
starry-flowered  portulaca  carpet  the  worn  stone 
flagging.  But  many  a  fierce  and  bloody  struggle 
have  the  old  forts  seen;  the  silent  guns  have  oft 
belched  forth  their  messages  of  death  across  the 
sparkling  azure  sea;  the  flagging  has  run  red  with 
human  blood,  and  the  narrow  sallyports  have  been 
heaped  high  and  blocked  with  corpses  of  the  slain. 
Upon  these  heights  Briton  and  Gaul  have  fought, 
and  won,  and  lost,  and  fallen.  Above  the  battle- 
ments have  fluttered  the  lilies  of  France  and  the 
cross  of  St.  George  in  turn,  and  for  a  space  no 
banner  snapped  in  the  breeze  from  the  lofty  staff, 
neither  British  nor  French  held  the  fortress  and 


ST.  VINCENT  127 

manned  the  guns.  In  place  of  uniformed  soldiery 
a  horde  of  naked  savages  swarmed  upon  the  heights, 
fierce  Carib  warriors,  who,  striving  desperately 
to  win  back  their  usurped  land,  were,  for  the 
moment,  victors  in  the  hopeless  struggle. 

Not  until  four  thousand  disciplined  troops  took 
the  field,  not  until  many  lives  were  sacrificed  on 
both  sides,  not  until  the  green  verdure  of  the  hill 
was  crimsoned  with  blood,  were  the  Indians  driven 
from  the  stronghold  they  had  captured.  And, 
even  then,  they  were  unconquered.  Though  their 
chief  was  gibbeted,  though  hundreds  of  the  tribe 
were  sent  in  exile  to  Honduras,  yet  the  remnant 
of  the  indomitable  yellow-skinned  aborigines  re- 
fused to  surrender  to  Abercromby  and  took  to 
their  mountain  forests.  Here,  defying  the  mighty 
power  of  Britain,  they  lived,  harassing  the  settlers 
at  every  chance,  making  bloody  forays  on  outlying 
estates,  towns,  and  villages,  until,  at  last,  England 
was  glad  to  sue  for  peace  and  signed  a  treaty  with 
her  savage  foes,  by  which  they  were  given  per- 
petual ownership  of  230  acres  near  Morne  Rodonde. 
Here  the  last  of  the  St.  Vincent  Caribs  settled 
down  and,  Ia3'ing  aside  the  weapons  of  war,  busied 
themselves  in  cultivating  their  gardens,  weaving 
baskets,  and  fishing  in  the  neighboring  sea.  But  the 
doom  of  the  Caribs,  as  a  race,  was  sealed;  it  was 
the  same  old  story  of  the  red  and  white.  Slowly, 
but  surely,  the  original  owners  of  the  island  died 


128 


THE  WEST  INDIES 


out,  negro  blood  was  mixed  with  that  of  the  once 
proud  Indians,  and  nature  itself  seemed  to  con- 
spire against  them.  The  full  force  of  the  eruption 
of  1902  fell  upon  the  Carib  country,  only  a  handful 
survived  that  awful  holocaust,  none  of  pure  blood 
remained,  and  the  pitiful  remnant  of  the  once 
great  tribe  became  homeless,  landless  paupers, 
dependent  upon  the  bounty  of  the  government 
their  forefathers  warred  with  for  so  long. 


ST.    GEORGE.    GRENADA 


STREET   IN    ST.    GEORGE.    GRENADA 


CHAPTER  XII 

GRENADA,   THE   ISLE  OF   SPICE 

SOUTHWARD  from  St.  Vincent  stretch  the  Grena- 
dines,— like  beads  of  jade  upon  an  invisible  string, 
— to  fair  Grenada,  an  emerald  pyramid  looming 
against  the  sky. 

Beautiful  are  the  Grenadines,  the  tips  of  sub- 
merged mountain  peaks,  some  sandy,  low,  and 
palm-covered,  others  high,  rugged,  and  forested, 
some  wild  and  uninhabited,  others  populated, 
cultivated,  and  prosperous,  but  none  of  great  in- 
terest or  of  sufficient  importance  to  draw  steam- 
ships to  their  harbors. 

Last  of  the  Caribbees  is  Grenada,  a  superbly 
beautiful  and  fitting  pendant  jewel  to  the  chain 
of  island  gems.  Lofty  it  is  and  mountainous,  a 
land  so  sharply  defined,  so  clearly  cut,  that  it 
seems  hewn  bodily  from  some  monstrous  crystal 
of  green. 

Very  different  is  Grenada  from  all  the  other 

islands,  and  unlike  any  other  town  in  all  the  West 

Indies  is  its  capital.     Along  the  shore  one  sees  the 

clustering  buildings,  from  the  greenery  of  the  hill- 

9  129 


130  THE  WEST  INDIES 

side  above  peep  red  roofs,  and  at  the  summit  of 
the  rise  a  church  tower  stands  outlined  against  the 
verdure,  while  to  the  right  a  squat  old  fort  crowns 
the  grassy  headland.  Nothing  unusual  about  it, 
you  may  think,  and  you  wonder  why  the  steamer's 
speed  is  not  slackened,  why  no  vessels  swing  at 
anchor  off  the  town,  why  no  clustering  shore 
boats  are  putting  forth.  Even  as  such  thoughts 
cross  your  mind  the  vessel's  course  is  changed,  the 
ship  bears  towards  the  fort,  and  heads  directly  for 
the  wooded  heights  beyond.  Close  beneath  the 
old  gray  walls  of  the  fortress  on  the  .cliff  we  pass, 
and  then  a  cry  of  surprise  and  delight  escapes  our 
lips,  for  beyond  the  fort — hidden  from  the  open 
sea  and  nestling  among  the  hills — lies  a  land- 
locked, circular  bay  of  purest  blue,  and,  spreading 
fanwise  from  its  shores,  is  St.  George. 

Upward  from  the  neat  stone  docks  that  edge  this 
snug  harbor  sweep  the  steep  hillsides,  and  up 
their  slopes  clambers  the  town,  rows  of  red- tiled 
roofs  gleaming  in  the  sun  one  above  the  other, 
nodding  palms  and  flowering  trees  between  them, 
and  with  sharply  inclined,  narrow  thoroughfares 
dividing  the  step-like  brick  buildings.  Tier  after 
tier  upward  to  the  summit  of  the  ridge  and  down 
the  farther  side  the  town  extends,  and  far  up  the 
mountainside  houses  peep  from  the  rich  green 
verdure. 

To  the  left  the  town  ends  at  the  ancient  fort, 


GRENADA,  THE  ISLE  OF  SPICE     131 

to  the  right  it  loses  itself  'mid  palms  and  foliage, — 
the  oddest,  prettiest,  quaintest  town  in  the  Antilles. 
So  narrow  is  the  tiny  haven  that  when  the  great 
ship  drops  anchor  her  stern  is  moored  to  land  and 
so  close  to  the  street  that  one  might  almost  leap 
ashore,  and  lying  thus  the  steamer  all  but  bars 
the  harbor  entrance.  And  a  wonderful  harbor  it  is, 
too,  for  where  now  is  tranquil  water  was  once  a 
sea  of  molten  lava,  and  above  the  encircling  hills 
poured  fire,  smoke,  and  cinders,  for  Grenada's 
harbor  is  but  the  crater  of  an  extinct  volcano,  and 
no  man  can  say  that  it  may  not  yet  burst  forth  and 
blow  the  town  and  all  its  people  into  atoms.  Even 
within  historic  times  great  changes  have  taken 
place  in  St.  George's  crater  harbor.  In  1705, 
when  Abbe  Labat  visited  Grenada,  a  fort  and 
many  buildings  stood  upon  a  strip  of  land  pro- 
jecting from  the  eastern  side  of  the  harbor,  and 
across  the  mouth  of  a  lake  which  is  now  a  lagoon, 
and,  close  alongside,  was  excellent  anchorage  for  the 
largest  ships  of  the  time.  The  old  maps  show  that 
this  was  so,  records  prove  it,  and  yet,  to-day,  land, 
fort,  buildings  have  disappeared  completely,  the 
shore  ends  in  an  abrupt  cliff,  a  coral  reef  marks 
the  site  of  the  old  town  of  Port  Louis,  and  where 
the  big  bluff-bowed  ships  once  swung  to  their 
moorings  there  are  now  scarce  three  feet  of  water. 
Of  the  convulsion  which  took  place  and  destroyed 
the  original  settlement  with  its  fort  and  buildings 


132  THE  WEST  INDIES 

there  is  no  record,  for,  if  any  were  ever  made,  they 
were  doubtless  lost  or  destroyed  during  one  of  the 
disastrous  fires,  in  one  of  the  many  struggles 
between  the  French  and  British,  or  else  were  re- 
moved to  Martinique,  together  with  all  other 
papers  and  documents  prior  to  1763,  when 
Grenada  was  surrendered  to  the  British. 

But  in  more  recent  times,  on  November  18, 1867, 
to  be  exact,  the  subterranean  forces  again  reminded 
the  Grenadans  that  their  charming  harbor  fills  the 
crater  of  a  volcano.  Between  5  and  5 : 20  o'clock 
on  the  afternoon  of  that  date,  the  calm  and  placid 
waters  of  the  harbor  suddenly  receded  for  a  dis- 
tance of  five  feet  or  more  and  fully  exposing  the 
coral  reef  at  the  mouth  of  the  lagoon.  With  a 
rumbling  noise,  the  water  over  a  deep  area  known 
as  the  "Green  Hole"  commenced  to  boil,  and  sul- 
phurous vapors  poured  from  it,  and  then,  as  if 
lifted  from  beneath,  the  entire  harbor  rose  and 
rushed  towards  the  shore,  flooding  the  lower  streets 
and  docks  to  a  depth  of  four  or  five  feet.  Once, 
twice,  thrice,  four  times,  the  waters  fell  until  the 
bottom  of  the  bay  was  bare  in  many  places,  and 
each  time  it  again  rose  like  a  wall  above  the  docks, 
swamping  and  wrecking  boats,  stranding  vessels, 
and  undermining  buildings,  but  fortunately  with 
no  loss  of  life. 

And  when  at  last  the  harbor  resumed  its  normal 
tranquil  state  the  people  found  that  the  Green 


GRENADA,  THE  ISLE  OF  SPICE     133 

Hole  had  been  filled  up,  reefs  had  risen  from  the 
depths,  the  shores  had  been  altered,  and  former 
shallows  had  become  deep  water.  Two  severe 
earthquakes  followed  the  outburst,  like  the  last 
convulsive  twitchings  of  the  dying  volcanic  forces 
beneath  the  sea,  and  then  the  inhabitants  again 
forgot  the  dangers  that  lurked  beneath  the  harbor 
and  resumed  the  even  tenor  of  their  lives. 

The  chances  are  that  no  serious  outbreak  will 
ever  occur,  that  generations  of  Grenadans  will 
live  and  die  in  peace  and  undisturbed  by  the 
slumbering  volcanic  forces  'neath  the  island,  for 
there  are  no  active  craters  on  Grenada  and  no 
symptoms  of  activity  were  manifested  during  the 
eruption  of  St.  Vincent  less  than  seventy  miles 
distant. 

Aside  from  its  quaint  picturesqueness,  there  is 
little  enough  to  be  seen  in  St.  George.  The 
streets,  save  along  the  water-front,  are  so 
precipitous  as  to  be  actually  forbidding,  and  in 
many  places  they  are  so  perpendicular  that  they 
are  constructed  in  the  form  of  steps.  The  larger 
part  of  the  town  and  most  of  the  business  section 
lie  beyond  the  ridge-topped  peninsula,  and  to 
make  intercourse  between  the  two  sides  of  the 
hill  less  arduous  a  tunnel  has  been  drilled  through 
from  side  to  side.  This  tunnel,  known  as  the 
Sendall  Tunnel,  in  honor  of  Gov.  Sir  Walter  Sendall 
under  whose  administration  it  was  constructed, 


134  THE  WEST  INDIES 

was  not  completed  until  1895,  although  the  first 
blast  was  exploded  by  Lady  Sendall  on  Nov.  21, 
1889.  It  must  have  proved  an  immense  relief  to 
the  Grenadans,  who  were  previously  compelled  to 
toil  up  one  steep  slope  and  down  another  to  go 
from  place  to  place  in  St.  George,  but  the  natives 
seem  to  give  little  heed  to  the  roof -like  character 
of  their  town  and  trip  blithely  up  their  toboggan- 
slide  highways  rather  than  take  the  trouble  to  go 
out  of  their  way  and  use  the  tunnel.  Indeed,  after 
a  short  stay  in  St.  George,  the  visitor  is  convinced 
that,  through  generations,  the  Grenadans  must 
have  developed  superhuman,  goat-like  proclivities 
for  climbing. 

But  the  stranger  will  be  wise  if  he  refrains  from 
attempting  to  emulate  them  and  avails  himself, 
or  herself,  of  one  of  the  public  carriages  or  motor 
cars  which  may  be  hired,  for,  impossible  as  it  seems 
at  first  sight,  carriages  and  automobiles  travel 
here,  there,  and  everywhere  in  the  town, — only 
balking  at  the  flights  of  steps. 

There  are  numerous  stores  in  the  town,  one  so- 
called  hotel,  two  clubs,  a  public  library  and  reading 
room,  an  interesting  market,  and  several  fine  old 
churches,  as  well  as  a  botanic  station  across  the 
harbor,  and  the  Queen's  Park.  But  the  most 
interesting  structure  in  St.  George  is  old  Fort 
George  upon  its  promontory.  A  finely  preserved, 
stout  old  pile  it  is  and  its  massive  walls  show  little 


GRENADA,  THE  ISLE  OF  SPICE     135 

effects  of  the  two  centuries  and  more  of  sun  and 
storm,  of  calm  and  tempest,  of  peace  and  war, 
which  have  passed  since  the  French  owners  of 
Grenada  first  manned  its  battlements  in  1705. 

Standing  upon  its  parapets  and  looking  forth 
upon  the  sparkling  sea  on  the  one  hand  and  across 
the  harbor  and  its  encircling  amphitheater  of  hills 
on  the  other,  one  marvels  that  any  foe  of  olden 
days  could  ever  have  taken  the  town  thus  guarded, 
for  the  fort's  guns  commanded  sea  and  shore  in 
every  direction  and  any  vessel  entering  the  port 
must  pass  within  musket  shot  of  its  embrasures. 
No  longer  is  it  of  any  value  as  a  fortress,  no  invad- 
ing squadrons  of  wall-sided,  bluff-bowed  frigates 
menace  the  quiet  of  the  island,  the  one-time 
enemies  who  struggled  and  battled  for  supremacy 
in  the  Caribbean  are  fighting  side  by  side  against 
a  common  foe.  To-day,  the  grim  old  fort  has 
fallen  to  the  ignominious  estate  of  a  police  barracks, 
and  its  silent,  corroded  guns  serve  as  playthings  for 
laughing  children  who  fill  the  black  muzzles  with 
pebbles  and  flowers  and  chase  the  lizards  over  the 
grass-grown  parapets. 

Across  the  harbor,  perched  on  the  summit  of  a 
hill  750  feet  above  the  sea,  are  Forts  Matthew  and 
Frederick,  far  larger  and  more  powerful  than  that 
which  guards  the  harbor  entrance,  and  now  used 
as  prisons  and  insane  asylums.  From  here  one 
may  obtain  a  superbly  beautiful  view,  and  the 


136  THE  WEST  INDIES 

visitor  cannot  cease  to  wonder  why  the  convicts 
and  idiots  of  the  island  are  thus  favored  with  the 
finest  location  on  Grenada  as  their  temporary 
residence. 

Back  of  the  town,  also,  there  are  forts,  four  hun- 
dred feet  above  the  harbor,  on  Hospital  Hill,  and 
near  them  the  roofs  of  Government  House  may 
be  seen  half-screened  by  the  splendid  gardens  of 
its  grounds. 

Interesting  sights  may  be  scarce  in  Grenada's 
unique  capital,  but  there  is  plenty  to  be  seen  if  one 
rides  or  drives  about  the  island.  Everywhere  are 
perfect  roads,  and,  although  the  grades  are  pro- 
digiously steep  in  many  places,  the  highways 
are  broad,  smooth,  well  kept,  and  unbelievably 
beautiful  as  to  surroundings. 

At  every  turn,  one  looks  upon  deep  rich  valleys 
hemmed  in  by  verdured  mountain  heights  and, 
gazing  down, — like  eagles  from  their  aerie, — we 
see  the  neat  cultivated  lands  and  gleaming  build- 
ings of  estates,  like  toy  houses  on  checkerboards 
of  green.  Through  wonderful  vistas  of  waving 
palms  and  flower-draped  cliffs  are  glimpses  of  the 
sparkling  sea,  stretching  like  a  blue-tile  floor  to 
the  horizon.  Flaming  poinciana  trees  spread  their 
scarlet-flowered  branches  above  the  road,  or  stand 
boldly  forth  against  the  dark  foliage  of  the 
mountainsides,  like  the  glowing  coals  of  giant  fires. 
Under  sun-dappled  arches  of  bamboo,  with  feathery 


GRENADA,  THE  ISLE  OF  SPICE     137 

branches  clashing  softly  in  the  breeze  half  a  hun- 
dred feet  above  our  heads,  the  road  leads  on.  We 
rumble  across  bridges  spanning  precipitous  ravines, 
with  tumbling  silvery  streams  cutting  the  purple- 
shaded  depths  a  thousand  feet  beneath.  Close 
under  the  overhanging  cliffs  the  highway  creeps, 
where  trailing  vines  and  fairy-like  ferns  are  drip- 
ping with  seeping  moisture,  like  strings  of  priceless 
pearls.  Ever  the  way  winds  past  hillsides  dark 
with  the  dense  shade  of  cocoa  and  ever  it  passes 
through  groves  of  nutmeg,  fruit,  and  spice  trees. 
Beside  the  highway  are  neat  thatched  huts  em- 
bowered in  palms  and  flowers  and  surrounded  by 
vegetable  gardens,  and  everywhere  are  signs  of  a 
prosperous,  contented  people,  self-respecting,  in- 
dependent peasant  proprietors  who  are  able  to 
make  a  good  livelihood  from  their  own  lands. 

But  while  the  wisdom  of  inducing  the  natives  to 
become  self-supporting  agriculturists  has  done 
much  to  make  Grenada  a  well-cultivated  island, 
there  is  still  much  of  the  interior  which  is  wild, 
uncultivated,  untouched  by  hand  of  man,  and  a 
visit  to  the  Gran  Etang  will  carry  one  through 
the  primeval  high  woods  of  Grenada  and  amid 
scenery  of  surpassing  grandeur.  As  the  road  sur- 
mounts the  hills  and  leaves  the  lowlands  behind, 
the  air  becomes  damp  and  cool,  the  great  rifts  in 
the  mountains'  flanks  are  filled  with  a  strange 
green-blue  semi- twilight,  and  the  vast  silence  is 


138  THE  WEST  INDIES 

broken  only  by  the  tinkling  splash  of  an  unseen 
waterfall,  the  soft  dripping  of  moisture  from  the 
trees,  and  the  far-off  music  of  song  birds  hidden  in 
the  dense  jungle. 

Skirting  the  very  brinks  of  dizzying  precipices, 
where  one  may  look  down  a  sheer  thousand  feet 
to  a  far-away  torrent  in  the  dark  bottom  of  the 
defile;  hugging  towering  mountain  sides,  with 
stupendous  forest  trees  rearing  their  mighty  trunks 
a  hundred  feet  and  more  above  the  sopping  earth, 
the  road  winds  ever  toward  the  clouds.  Great 
tree-ferns  droop  plume-like  fronds  above  the  path- 
way; wild  plantain  flowers  gleam,  like  tongues  of 
flame,  in  the  shadows;  wonderful  begonias  hide 
rotting  stumps  and  jutting  boulders  with  festoons 
of  coral  pink;  orchids  deck  the  trees,  and  gorgeous 
humming  birds  flash  in  the  filtering  rays  of  sun- 
light, like  tiny  meteors  of  sapphire,  emerald,  and 
ruby.  For  miles  one  travels  through  this  wonder- 
land where  man  seems  dwarfed  to  pigmy  size,  so 
tremendous  is  the  scale  on  which  everything  is 
fashioned.  The  trees  tower  to  unbelievable 
heights;  ferns  grow  to  the  size  of  palms;  rank-grow- 
ing plants  flaunt  leaves,  each  large  enough  to 
shelter  a  horse  and  rider  from  the  heaviest  shower ; 
flowers  as  big  as  saucers,  star  beds  of  moss  in 
which  the  traveler  sinks  to  his  knees;  and,  trailing 
from  the  tree  tops, — encircling  the  trunks  as 
though  the  forest  giants  were  but  bean  poles, — are 


GRENADA,  THE  ISLE  OF  SPICE     139 

gnarled  and  twisted  vines  as  huge  as  ships'  cables 
and  bearing  pea-like  pods  a  yard  in  length.  It 
seems  unreal,  dreamlike,  preposterously  magnified, 
as  if  one  were  looking  at  a  forest  through  some 
giant's  microscope,  and  it  dawns  upon  one  that 
thus  must  appear  an  ordinary  wood  to  the  busy 
ants  and  tiny  insects. 

And  then,  at  last,  the  Gran  Etang  is  reached, 
a  little  cloud-kissed  cairn  of  liquid  silver,  gleaming 
amid  the  wondrous  verdure  eighteen  hundred  feet 
above  the  sea  and  filling  the  center  of  an  extinct 
crater  some  thirty  acres  in  extent. 

Beside  it  is  a  rest  house,  where  one  may  stop 
in  comfort  if  not  too  firmly  bound  by  conventions, 
and,  upon  the  lake,  are  skiffs  which  enable  visitors 
to  paddle  about  this  strange  water-filled  crater  in 
the  heart  of  the  primeval  wilderness.  Cold  as  a 
bubbling  spring  is  the  water,  unfathomable  in 
depth,  fed  by  tiny  streams  and  the  seeping,  per- 
petual moisture  of  drifting  clouds,  and  with  no 
outlet  to  be  seen.  In  the  forests  round  about  are 
wild  monkeys,  agouti,  pigeons,  and  many  other 
birds,  but  there  are  no  venomous  snakes, — few  of 
any  kind  in  fact, — no  dangerous  insects,  nothing 
to  fear,  and  the  visitor,  fond  of  nature  wild  and 
untrammeled,  may  well  spend  days  in  this  out- 
of-the-world  spot  on  Grenada's  roof.  Here  the 
air  is  cool,  fresh,  and  invigorating,  and  blankets 
are  in  order  at  night,  for  the  temperature,  even 


140  THE  WEST  INDIES 

at  midday,  rarely  rises  above  75°  and  often  falls 
below  60°  after  sundown. 

Near  at  hand  is  Morne  Ferdon,  where  the  French 
and  negro  insurrectionists  intrenched  themselves 
in  1795,  and  in  view  of  the  attacking  British  troops 
fiendishly  butchered  Lieut.-Governor  Home  and 
forty-seven  white  captives.  To-day,  a  memorial 
pillar,  marks  the  scene  of  the  historic  atrocity,  and 
many  a  picnic  party  makes  merry  on  the  lofty 
summit,  where  once  the  blood-mad  horde  tortured 
and  slew  the  helpless  prisoners. 

But  scenes  of  battle  and  of  bloodshed  of  past 
centuries  are  often  less  interesting  than  scenes  of 
peace  and  progress  of  the  present,  and  to  many 
visitors  to  Grenada  a  trip  to  a  cocoa  or  nutmeg 
estate  will  prove  far  more  satisfactory  and  worth 
while  than  the  pilgrimage  to  the  Gran  Etang  or  to 
Ferdon  Heights.  There  are  plenty  of  such  estates 
within  easy  reach  of  St.  George,  and  the  visitor 
may  be  sure  of  a  hearty  welcome  by  the  owners  or 
managers,  who  will  be  only  too  glad  to  show  the 
stranger  every  step  in  the  interesting  process  of 
curing  both  the  cocoa  and  nutmegs. 

Those  who  have  never  seen  nutmegs,  save  in  the 
dried  commercial  form  in  which  we  use  them, 
would  never  recognize  the  growing  spice.  Hang- 
ing from  the  tips  of  the  glossy-leaved  branches  of 
the  female  trees,  are  salmon-colored  fruits  much 
like  nectarines  or  apricots  in  appearance,  and  as 


GRENADA,  THE  ISLE  OF  SPICE     141 

these  ripen  they  split  open  and  expose  a  shining 
dark  brown  seed,  or  stone,  covered  with  a  network 
of  intense  crimson. 

When  fully  mature  the  fruits  fall  to  the  ground 
and  the  two  halves  separate  and  release  the  nut- 
megs within.  Highly  ornamental  are  the  glossy 
nuts  with  their  vivid  scarlet,  lace-like  covering, 
which  is  the  mace  of  commerce  and  the  most  valu- 
able product  of  the  trees.  The  preparation  of  the 
nuts  is  very  simple,  the  mace  being  carefully 
removed  and  dried  in  the  sun,  when  it  assumes  a 
dull  brownish-yellow  hue,  and  the  nuts  themselves 
being  cured  in  the  shade  for  a  few  days  and  then 
in  the  bright  sunlight,  after  which  they  are  cracked 
open  and  the  internal  kernels  or  real  nutmegs  are 
removed  and  packed  for  shipment.  Little  goes 
to  waste  in  the  preparation  of  nutmegs,  for  even 
the  pulpy  fruit  itself  is  used  and  in  Grenada  is 
made  into  jams  and  jellies,  which  are  delicious  and 
with  a  sweet,  spicy,  aromatic  flavor  very  different 
from  anything  else. 

Much  more  complicated  and  more  interesting 
is  the  preparation  of  cocoa,  the  most  important  of 
Grenada's  crops.  Growing  directly  from  the 
trunks  and  branches  of  the  trees,  the  big,  roughly 
corrugated  purple,  red,  and  yellow  pods  present  a 
very  strange  appearance,  looking,  as  one  visitor 
remarked,  "like  squashes  growing  on  trees." 
The  pods  are  cut  from  the  trees  with  knives  at  the 


142  THE  WEST  INDIES 

ends  of  bamboo  poles  and,  as  fast  as  picked,  are 
collected  in  baskets  by  the  women  laborers.  From 
the  baskets  they  are  emptied  into  huge  piles  be- 
neath the  trees  and  are  opened  by  men  who  are 
so  expert  at  the  work  that  eye  can  scarce  follow 
their  motions  as,  with  a  single  blow  of  a  machete, 
the  pods  are  split  open  and  tossed  aside.  Within 
the  pods  is  a  mass  of  thick,  whitish  pulp  containing 
numerous  rounded  brown  seeds, — the  cocoa  beans 
of  commerce.  But  with  the  extraction  of  the 
messy  pulp  and  its  wet  seeds  the  preparation  of  the 
cocoa  has  just  commenced  and  many  processes 
must  be  undergone  ere  the  beans  are  ready  for 
market. 

First,  the  mass  of  pulp  and  seeds  is  dumped  into 
boxes  with  perforated  bottoms  and  over  them  is 
placed  a  layer  of  plaintain  or  banana  leaves.  The 
building  within  which  the  boxes  are  placed  is 
known  as  the  "Sweating  House,"  and  upon  the 
care  taken  in  "sweating"  the  quality  of  the  beans 
largely  depends.  Within  the  covered  boxes  the 
beans  are  left  to  ferment  for  about  three  days,  and 
are  then  transferred  to  other  boxes  and  allowed  to 
stand  two  or  three  days  more  when,  by  the  fifth 
or  sixth  day,  the  slimy  pulp  will  have  disappeared 
and  the  brown  color  of  the  seeds  will  have  changed 
to  purple. 

The  beans  are  then  spread  evenly  in  great  drying 
trays,  which  are  arranged  to  run  on  rails  beneath 


GRENADA,  THE  ISLE  OF  SPICE     143 

a  roof,  for  rain  is  most  injurious  and  the  trays 
must  be  run  under  cover  at  the  first  hint  of  a 
shower.  Here,  in  the  bright  sunshine,  the  beans 
are  raked  about  and  shuffled  by  barefooted  laborers 
until  thoroughly  cured,  rubbed,  and  polished  and 
ready  to  be  bagged  for  shipment.  On  many  of 
the  larger  and  more  modern  estates  the  cocoa  is 
dried  by  hot  air  under  cover,  while,  on  the  other 
hand,  many  of  the  smaller  peasant  planters  cure 
their  crops  on  trays  or  hides  placed  upon  the 
ground  or  by  the  roadsides,  and  where  cows,  pigs, 
children,  dogs,  chickens,  and  other  live  stock  wander 
and  play  among  them  at  will.  No  doubt  the  visi- 
tor will  look  with  undisguised  disgust  at  the  ne- 
groes treading  the  drying  beans  in  the  trays  and 
at  the  miscellaneous  assortment  of  birds  and 
beasts  nosing  and  scratching  among  those  of  the 
more  impecunious  peasants,  and  many  a  traveler 
has  vowed  never  to  partake  of  cocoa  or  chocolate 
after  viewing  such  sights.  But  only  the  inner 
kernel  is  used  in  manufacturing  cocoa  and  choco- 
late, and  no  one  need  forego  beverage  or  confection 
for  fear  of  accumulated  filth;  all  that  is  removed 
with  the  outer  skin  or  covering  which,  under  the 
name  of  broma  or  cocoa-shells,  is  advertised  as  the 
most  healthy  and  nourishing  portion  of  the  beans ! 


CHAPTER  XIII 

TRINIDAD,   THE  MAGNIFICENT 

A  TURBID,  coffee-colored  sea  and,  to  the  south,  a 
line  of  jagged  soft  blue  mountains  stretching  to 
east  and  west  to  where  they  blend  and  are  lost 
in  the  haze  of  distance.  The  one,  the  muddy 
waters  from  the  mighty  Orinoco;  the  other,  the 
coast  of  South  America  and  Trinidad. 

From  a  distance  the  land  seems  continuous, 
unbroken,  but,  as  the  blue  indistinct  mountains 
resolve  into  forest-clad  slopes,  frowning  precipices, 
and  deep  ravines,  openings  appear  between  the 
peaks, — narrow  straits  of  water, — the  famous 
bocas  that  connect  the  Gulf  of  Paria  with  the 
open  sea. 

To  the  right  are  the  sierras  of  Venezuela,  mas- 
sive, dark,  forbidding ;  to  the  left  the  mountains  of 
Trinidad,  richly,  gloriously  green,  and  between  the 
two,  the  lofty  islands,  like  Titan's  stepping-stones 
from  shore  to  shore. 

It  is  a  strange  sensation  to  pass  through  the 
bocas  for  the  first  time,  and  few  are  those  who  can 
refrain  from  gazing  in  wonder  at  the  sight,  even 
144 


TRINIDAD,  THE  MAGNIFICENT     145 

though  they  have  made  the  passage  many  times. 
On  either  hand  tower  the  stupendous  cliffs,  seamed 
and  scarred,  worn  into  uncouth  forms  and  great 
caverns  by  the  restless  surges  ever  dashing  about 
them,  covered  with  dense  green  verdure  to  their 
summits  and  peopled  by  countless  sea  birds  which 
wheel  and  scream  as  the  passing  ship  rouses  them 
from  their  wave-washed  roosting  places. 

Like  great  walls  of  red  rock  and  green  forest  the 
islands  rear  their  heights  far  above  the  mastheads, 
seemingly  about  to  topple  over  on  the  puny  vessel 
as  she  follows  the  narrow  channel  beneath  the 
cliffs  and  so  close  at  hand  it  seems  as  though  one 
might  almost  leap  ashore.  And  then  the  boca 
is  passed,  the  guardian  islands  of  Trinidad's  por- 
tals are  left  behind,  and  before  us  stretches  the 
tranquil  lake-like  Gulf  of  Paria  with  Trinidad,  vast, 
colorful,  magnificent,  stretching  in  a  thousand  hills 
to  the  southern  horizon. 

For  an  hour  or  more  the  ship  steams  swiftly 
down  the  gulf,  past  the  tiny  "Five  Islands,"  with 
their  brightly  painted  bungalows  amid  the  ver- 
dure; past  the  great  gray  prison  on  its  little  isle; 
past  an  endless  succession  of  mountains,  hills,  and 
valleys  rising  from  the  water's  edge  in  tier  after 
tier  to  distant,  shadowy,  cloudlike  forms  of  hazy 
blue,  until,  at  last,  anchor  is  dropped  in  the  har- 
bor of  Port-of-Spain. 

Three  miles  or  more  from  land  the  ship  swings  to 


146  THE  WEST  INDIES 

her  moorings  amid  a  fleet  of  steamers,  sailing  ships, 
and  coal  hulks,  for  the  harbor  is  shallow  and  freight 
and  passengers  must  be  transported  to  the  town  in 
tugs,  launches,  and  lighters. 

Beneath  the  shadow  of  the  mountains,  upon  a 
gently  sloping  plain,  lies  Port-of-Spain,  its  build- 
ings stretching  for  miles  along  the  shore,  but  with 
little  of  the  city  itself  visible  amid  the  waving 
palms  and  clustering  verdure,  and,  seeing  it  from 
a  distance,  no  one  would  dream  that  here  is  a 
town  of  seventy  thousand  inhabitants,  the  largest, 
busiest  port  in  the  British  West  Indies  and  the 
second  largest  city  in  the  Antilles. 

Serene  and  peaceful  the  vast  green  island  sweeps 
from  horizon  to  horizon :  to  the  north,  lofty,  rugged, 
crumpled  in  countless  ridges  and  massive  peaks, 
slashed  and  hewn  with  black  defiles  and  shadowy 
valleys;  to  the  south,  dropping  from  rounded  hills 
to  rolling  plains  and  broad  savanna  lands,  low, 
flat,  and  shimmering  with  a  golden  haze. 

Largest  of  the  Lesser  Antilles  and  most  southerly 
of  West  Indian  isles  is  Trinidad,  fifty-five  miles 
long  and  forty  miles  in  width,  and  so  immense  in 
area  that  it  seems  a  hilly  rather  than  a  mountain- 
ous land,  although  Tucutche  towers  for  over  three 
thousand  feet  above  the  sea  and  many  lesser  peaks 
are  half  a  mile  or  more  in  height. 

Much  of  the  impressive  grandeur  and  the  sub- 
lime scenery  of  the  smaller  volcanic  islands  is 


TRINIDAD,  THE  MAGNIFICENT    147 

lacking,  but  none  can  surpass  Trinidad  in  luxuri- 
ance of  vegetation,  wonderful  cataracts,  richness, 
resources,  and  progress.  Within  its  pathless  for- 
ests of  rare  and  valuable  woods  teems  strange  wild 
life.  Monkeys  and  parrots  scream  and  chatter 
in  the  tree  tops,  ant-bears,  sloths,  ocelots,  and  pec- 
caries haunt  the  jungles,  alligators  sun  themselves 
on  banks  of  estuaries  and  lagoons,  and  birds  of 
brilliant  plumage  flit  amid  the  foliage.  Its 
resources  are  marvelous,  inexhaustible,  its  fertil- 
ity incredible  and  its  fauna  and  flora  that  of  the 
South  American  wilderness,  for  Trinidad  is  but  a 
detached  bit  of  the  Southern  continent  separated 
from  its  parent  only  by  the  narrow  bocas.  Here 
is  one's  ideal  of  the  tropics,  the  realization  of 
youthful  dreams  of  dark  jungles,  strange  beasts 
and  birds,  intense  color,  vast  morasses,  trackless 
forests,  unknown  caverns,  and  a  wilderness  of 
mountains.  Its  only  drawback  is  its  climate,  for 
with  all  its  attractions  and  charms — and  they  are 
manifold — Trinidad  is  hot,  damp,  and  oppressive 
on  its  westward  slopes,  for  the  trade  wind  never 
reaches  here, — the  mountains  encompass  the  town 
as  with  a  stupendous  wall, — and  no  life-giving 
breeze  comes  from  the  great  landlocked  gulf. 
But  it  is  not  unhealthy,  and  on  the  hills — even 
at  the  slight  elevation  of  the  savanna — one  may 
find  cool  nights  and  bearable  days,  while  on  the 
windward  slopes  the  air  is  cool,  breezes  blow 


148  THE  WEST  INDIES 

ceaselessly,  and  save  at  midday  the  climate  is 
all  that  one  could  wish. 

When  the  visitor  steps  ashore  at  Port-of -Spain 
he  steps  into  a  big,  modern,  bustling  town.  At 
the  large,  commodious,  well-built  docks  which 
line  the  water-front  are  scores  of  sailing  vessels, 
countless  lighters  and  barges,  dozens  of  coastwise 
steamers,  and  innumerable  launches,  tugs,  and 
miscellaneous  craft. 

The  broad,  smooth  thoroughfares  are  crowded 
with  moving  vehicles  of  every  description,  from 
humble  donkey-carts  to  huge  motor-trucks,  and 
the  nearby  railway  yards  are  filled  with  lines  of 
freight  cars,  coaches,  and  locomotives.  Parallel 
with  the  shore,  a  great  double  avenue  runs  from 
end  to  end  of  the  town,  its  central  portion  swarded 
and  shaded  with  rows  of  spreading  mahogany 
trees,  beneath  which  are  well-kept  paths  and  neat 
benches.  This  splendid,  park-like  thoroughfare, 
known  as  Marine  Square,  would  be  a  credit  to 
any  city,  but  there  are  few  streets  in  Port-of-Spain 
of  which  the  same  could  not  be  said  with  equal 
truth.  All  the  streets  are  beautifully  paved  with 
asphalt,  as  are  many  of  the  remote  country  roads 
as  well, — for  Trinidad  is  the  source  of  the  greater 
portion  of  the  world's  asphalt  supply  and  it  is  the 
cheapest  road-making  material  on  the  island, — and 
all  are  wide,  straight,  well  kept,  and  so  clean  they 
would  put  the  best  of  New  York's  avenues  to  shame. 


TRINIDAD,  THE  MAGNIFICENT    149 

The  city  is  well  laid  out,  nearly  all  the  streets 
running  at  right  angles,  there  are  numerous  shaded 
parks  and  breathing  spaces,  trolley  cars  run  every- 
where, and  the  whole  aspect  of  the  town  is  one  of 
progress,  modernity,  prosperity,  and  neatness. 
About  Marine  Square,  Broadway,  and  Frederick 
Streets,  are  most  of  the  large  stores  and  wholesale 
houses,  the  banks,  clubs,  and  steamship  offices,  but 
there  are  stores  and  shops  everywhere  and  the 
strictly  residential  portions  of  the  town  are  in 
the  suburbs. 

The  buildings  are  nearly  all  of  stone  or  concrete, 
well  built,  brightly  painted,  many  very  artistic, 
and  all,  save  the  government  buildings,  with  a 
decidedly  tropical,  foreign  appearance. 

The  shopping  district  fairly  teems  with  pedes- 
trians and  vehicles  throughout  the  business  hours, 
and  Frederick  Street,  which  is  perhaps  the  busiest 
in  the  city,  is  a  gay  and  interesting  sight,  kaleido- 
scopic in  color,  crowded  with  life,  and  a  very  bee- 
hive of  activity.  Here  are  stores  after  stores  of 
every  kind,  many  modeled  on  the  plan  of  our  own 
department  stores,  and  here  one  may  find  anything 
and  everything  the  markets  of  the  world  afford. 

Bright-hued — even  gaudily  painted — are  the 
buildings,  and  with  canvas  sun  awnings  bearing 
advertisements,  the  names  of  stores,  or  ornamental 
designs  hung  above  the  sidewalks,  while  passing 
to  and  fro  in  an  ever-flowing  stream  are  people 


150  THE  WEST  INDIES 

of  a  score  of  races,  and  a  dozen  tongues  greet 
one's  ears.  Exquisitely  gowned  French  ladies, 
dark-eyed  Spanish  and  Venezuelan  senoritas, 
pantalooned  Chinese  women,  buxom  negresses, 
statuesque  quadroons,  swarthy  Portuguese,  pink- 
cheeked  English  girls  fresh  from  home,  pale-faced 
English  women  who  have  dwelt  long  in  the  tropics, 
nervously  hurrying  tourists  from  the  States,  and 
dark-skinned,  dog-eyed  coolie  women  in  filmy 
lace,  with  rings  in  noses  and  laden  with  massive 
silver  anklets  and  bracelets  galore,  all  jostle  one 
another  on  the  crowded  sidewalks  and  in  the  busy 
shops.  And  liberally  represented  are  the  mascu- 
line members  of  Port-of-Spain's  polyglot  popula- 
tion. Half-naked,  spindle-legged  Hindus  with 
huge  turbans,  stolid  Chinese,  herculean  negroes, 
fiercely  mustached  Latin- Americans,  French,  Span- 
ish, Italian,  Portuguese,  English,  Americans,  Dutch, 
Irish,  Scotch,  Norwegians,  every  race  and  nation, 
save  Germans,  are  there,  as  well  as  innumerable, 
unidentifiable  individuals  in  whose  veins  runs  the 
blood  of  half  the  nations  of  Europe  and  a  varying 
quantity  of  Africa. 

Wonderful  linguists  must  be  the  clerks  in 
Trinidad's  stores,  for  within  a  space  of  ten  minutes 
the  man  behind  the  counter  may  be  called  upon 
to  wait  on  customers  in  as  many  tongues.  Spanish 
is  spoken  everywhere  and  one  hears  it  quite  as 
often  as  English,  for  Trinidad  was  long  under 


TRINIDAD,  THE  MAGNIFICENT    151 

Spanish  rule  and  its  proximity  to  Venezuela  re- 
sults in  an  enormous  Spanish  population  and  trade. 
French  runs  Castilian  a  close  second  and  Italian, 
Portuguese,  Creole  patois,  and  Hindustani  are 
all  in  the  day's  work. 

And,  speaking  of  Hindustani,  here  in  Trinidad 
for  the  first  time  the  visitor  to  the  islands  sees  the 
picturesque  East  Indians,  the  coolies,  who,  brought 
over  as  indentured  field  hands  to  solve  the  labor 
problem,  have  prospered  and  increased  and  add 
a  delightful  Oriental  touch  to  the  island's  attrac- 
tions. One  sees  them  everywhere,  the  men,  thin 
almost  to  emaciation,  clad  in  the  briefest  of  cotton 
garments  consisting,  like  Gunga  Din's  costume, 
of  "Nothing  much  before  and  rather  less  than 
half  as  much  behind, "  yet,  despite  their  attenuated 
figures,  such  tireless,  ever-toiling  workers  that 
the  stranger  wonders  if  they  can  be  creatures  of 
flesh  and  blood.  The  women,  on  the  other  hand, 
are  plump  and  often  comely  and  are  attired  in 
bright-hued  jackets,  white  petticoats,  and  flowing 
silken  scarfs  and  fairly  scintillate  with  barbaric 
jewelry,  some  selling  sweetmeats  or  fruits  by  the 
wayside,  others  nursemaids  with  fair-haired  chil- 
dren in  charge,  and  still  others  menial  laborers 
like  their  turbaned  better  halves.  But  the  coolies 
are  not  seen  at  their  best  in  Port-of  Spain,  they  are 
merely  incidental,  and  to  study  them  amid  all  the 
accompaniments  and  atmosphere  of  transplanted 


152  THE  WEST  INDIES 

India,  one  should  visit  their  settlements  in  the 
outlying  districts,  on  the  estates,  or  in  San  Fer- 
nando down  the  coast. 

Port-of -Spain  is  so  large  that  the  visitor,  whose 
time  is  limited,  should  avail  himself  of  one  of  the 
numerous,  or  rather  innumerable,  public  "cabs" — 
which  are  really  ramshackle  victorias, — or,  if  pre- 
ferred, a  public  motor  car,  and  "do"  the  town  in 
comfort.  Trolley  rides  will  carry  one  to  most  of 
the  places  of  interest,  but  they  have  their  limita- 
tions, and  cab  rates  are  very  low,  for  the  one  "im- 
provement" to  which  the  Trinidadians  have  not 
awakened  is  the  bankrupting  taxi.  You  won't  need 
a  guide,  your  black  jehu  will  be  guide,  philosopher, 
and  friend  in  one,  and  no  megaphone-equipped 
'conductor  of  a  metropolitan  "rubber-neck"  auto 
can  compare  with  the  Trinidad  cabby  when  it 
comes  to  showing  one  the  "sights"  of  his  beloved 
capital.  But,  before  engaging  him,  be  sure  of 
your  bargain:  if  merely  hired  by  the  hour  you 
may  find  he  is  a  firm  believer  in  the  old  adage 
that  "the  longest  way  round  is  the  shortest  way 
home,"  and  will  drive  through  half  the  streets 
of  the  city  to  go  a  couple  of  blocks.  His 
tariff  is  regulated  by  law,  and  a  card  with 
the  rates  is  hung  up  in  every  public  vehicle; 
but  if  the  cabman  cannot  charge  more  than 
the  legal  price  there  is  nothing  to  prevent 
him  from  taking  less,  or  to  enter  into  a  bar- 


A   COOLIE    GIRL,    TRINIDAD 


TRINIDAD,  THE  MAGNIFICENT     153 

gain  to  visit  certain  stipulated  places  for  a  definite 
sum. 

There  are  many  places  of  interest  to  be  seen 
in  and  about  Port-of-Spain.  Facing  Brunswick 
Square,  with  its  broad  lawns,  its  dense  shade  trees, 
and  its  fountain,  are  the  massive  red  government 
buildings,  a  splendid  edifice,  and  opposite  are  the 
police  barracks  and  the  court  house.  Near  at 
hand,  and  also  on  Brunswick  Square,  is  the 
beautiful  Anglican  cathedral  of  the  Holy  Trinity. 
At  the  southern  end  of  the  town  is  the  Catholic 
cathedral  of  the  Immaculate  Conception,  with 
many  notable  paintings,  a  Florentian  pulpit,  and 
beautiful  stained  glass  windows.  There  is  an 
excellent  Public  Library,  a  fine  hospital,  and  street 
after  street  of  lovely  villas  in  the  midst  of  gardens 
which  seem  veritable  bits  of  fairyland.  But  the 
center  of  interest,  the  chef  d'ceuvre  of  Port-of- 
Spain's  attractions,  is  the  savanna  or  Queen's 
Park. 

At  the  summit  of  the  slope  on  which  the  city 
stands  is  the  savanna,  a  broad  oval  stretch  of 
greensward  some  two  hundred  acres  in  extent, 
bordered  by  spreading  saman  trees  and  flaming 
poincianas  and  encircled  by  a  splendid  boulevard. 
About  it,  on  three  sides,  are  magnificent  mansions 
in  gardens  worthy  of  an  Oriental  potentate;  nest- 
like  bungalows  and  villas  half-hidden  in  climbing 
gorgeous-flowered  vines,  giant  rose  trees,  and 


154  THE  WEST  INDIES 

graceful  palms;  and  the  great  Queen's  Park  Hotel, 
with  its  open-air  dining-rooms,  its  broad  verandas, 
and  its  beautiful  surroundings.  On  the  fourth  side 
stands  the  Government  House, — a  stately  struc- 
ture that  reminds  one  of  an  old  chateau, — in  the 
midst  of  spacious  grounds  ablaze  with  flowers, 
surrounded  with  palms  and  rare  trees  and  with  a 
wonderful  background  of  lofty  rich  green  moun- 
tains, and  adjoining  it  are  the  public  gardens 
which  are,  in  themselves,  worth  going  far  to  see. 

Upon  the  savanna,  sleek  cattle  graze,  races  are 
held,  and  polo,  football,  cricket,  and  other  games 
are  played,  for  it  is  large  enough  for  all,  and  here, 
of  an  afternoon,  come  all  the  wealth  and  fashion 
of  Port-of-Spain,  to  see  and  be  seen,  to  indulge  in 
the  outdoor  sports, — which  no  true  Britisher  can 
forego,  regardless  of  climate  or  geography, — and  to 
enjoy  the  cool  evening  breeze.  And  marvelously 
beautiful  and  enchanting  is  the  savanna  as  the 
great  red  sun  sinks  behind  the  Venezuelan  moun- 
tains across  the  gulf  and  darkness  descends  with 
tropic  swiftness  upon  the  land.  From  speeding 
motor  cars  and  open  windows  bright  beams  of 
light  glint  through  shrubbery  and  gleam  on 
ghostly  palm  trunks,  casting  long  mysterious  shad- 
ows across  the  broad  white  road.  Upon  the  soft 
scented  breeze  are  borne  the  merry  sounds  of 
laughter  and  of  music.  Over  the  dusky,  dim 
savanna  the  fireflies  dance  like  troops  of  elves,  and 


TRINIDAD,  THE  MAGNIFICENT     155 

against  the  star-studded,  velvet  sky  the  moun- 
tains loom — vast  and  black — like  the  massive 
battlements  of  an  ogre's  castle. 

But  Trinidad's  greatest  beauties  lie  without  the 
town  and,  unlike  many  of  the  other  islands' 
attractions,  they  are  all  easily  accessible  by  rail- 
way, carriage,  motor  car,  or  coastwise  steamer. 

Within  easy  walking  or  driving  distance  is  the 
capital's  source  of  water  supply,  the  Maraval 
Reservoir.  Beautifully  situated  is  the  great  arti- 
ficial lake  in  a  lovely  valley  at  whose  head  stands 
the  lofty  "Silla,"  and  whose  natural  attractions 
are  enhanced  a  hundred  fold  by  admirably  placed 
groups  of  palm  trees,  great  clumps  of  gigantic  bam- 
boos, brilliant  flowering  shrubs,  hedges  of  multi- 
colored crotons,  and  rustic,  embowered  summer 
houses. 

Less  than  ten  miles  from  town  is  the  famed 
Blue  Basin,  a  sight  without  a  counterpart  in  all 
the  world.  Here  in  the  rich  Diego  Martin  valley 
a  flashing  silver  stream  gushes  from  the  green 
depths  of  the  mountainside  and,  in  a  single  un- 
broken cataract,  plunges  into  a  great  bowl-like 
basin  of  rock,  fringed  with  ferns  and  plant  life 
wonderful  to  behold.  And  if  this  were  all,  the 
journey  to  the  valley  would  be  well  repaid,  but 
the  crowning  glory  of  the  whole,  the  culminating 
wonder  of  the  spot,  is  the  rock -bound  pool  into 
which  the  cascade  pours.  Crystalline  in  its  purity 


156  THE  WEST  INDIES 

the  water  issues  from  the  verdure,  but  within  the 
basin  below,  for  some  unknown  cause,  it  is  trans- 
formed into  liquid  sapphire,  a  pool  of  cerulean 
hue  so  intense,  so  artificial  in  its  color,  that  it 
seems  as  if  one's  hand,  if  dipped  within  it,  would 
be  drawn  forth  dyed  azure. 

Even  more  beautiful  in  its  surroundings,  and  far 
greater  in  height  and  volume,  is  the  Maraccas 
Waterfall  in  the  valley  of  the  same  name  some 
fourteen  miles  from  Port-of-Spain,  and  to  reach 
which  one  passes  through  sleepy,  restful,  quaint, 
old  St.  Joseph,  the  original  site  of  the  settlement 
of  the  island  and  until  the  British  occupation 
known  as  San  Jose. 

Luxuriant  with  vegetation,  its  slopes  rich  with 
cocoa  groves  and  dominated  by  Tucutche,  loftiest 
peak  of  Trinidad,  the  Maraccas  Valley  is  one  of  the 
island's  beauty  spots  and  a  fitting  setting  for  the 
cataract  that  has  made  the  valley  famous.  A 
sheer  350  feet  the  roaring  mass  of  water  plunges 
over  the  precipice,  while  from  it  ever  drifts  a  filmy 
veil  of  mist  and  spray  that  bathes  the  delicate 
ferns,  the  flowering  gloxinias,  the  delicate  begonias, 
the  strange  orchids,  and  the  trailing  vines  with  a 
ceaseless  shower.  Like  hoarfrost  the  moisture 
clings  to  blossom,  leaf,  and  twigs,  a  gentle  breeze 
ever  stirs  the  seeping  foliage  and,  spanning  the 
silver  torrent  like  a  fairy  bridge,  arches  a  rainbow. 

Even  larger  and  more  beautiful,  if  that  were 


TRINIDAD,  THE  MAGNIFICENT     157 

possible,  is  the  Caura  Waterfall,  a  wild,  impressive 
cataract  in  the  midst  of  the  virgin  forest  near 
Arima;  but  to  reach  it  entails  a  horseback  ride 
and  a  tramp  afoot  for  several  miles  after  leaving 
the  railway. 

Another  trip  of  great  interest  and  beauty  is  by 
boat  to  the  Five  Islands  and  the  bocas.  Like 
the  Antilles  in  miniature  the  little  islets  dot  the 
surface  of  the  gulf,  each  verdured,  each  with 
charming  bungalows  and  villas  peeping  from  the 
foliage,  each  with  its  lilliputian  beaches,  its  tiny 
coves,  and  its  secluded  nooks,  and  all  charming, 
picturesque,  delectable,  seemingly  created  as  ideal 
spots  for  picnics,  lovers,  and  honeymoons  and 
well  patronized  by  the  Trinidadians  for  such 
purposes.  Upon  the  islands  between  the  bocas 
are  also  many  attractive  bungalows  and  villas,  and 
all  about  are  charming  bathing  beaches,  wild  sea- 
washed  crags,  and  great  caverns  into  whose  yawn- 
ing mouths  the  visitor  may  enter  by  boat  in  calm 
weather.  Here,  in  the  bowels  of  the  solid  cliffs, 
dwell  the  guacharos  or  devil  birds,  the  alleged 
nut-eating,  bewhiskered  birds  of  Rooseveltian 
fame, — a  species  of  goatsucker  beloved  as  tidbits 
by  Trinidad  epicures,  and  so  reeking  with  grease 
that  the  natives  use  them  as  butter  or,  by  running 
a  wick  through  their  bodies,  convert  them  into 
ornithological  candles. 

But  Trinidad's  most  famous  sight — its  greatest 


158  THE  WEST  INDIES 

wonder — is  the  Pitch  Lake,  and  no  visit  to  the 
island  would  be  complete  without  a  trip  to  this 
really  remarkable  and  interesting  spot.  To  reach 
the  Pitch  Lake  from  Port-of-Spain  one  must 
travel  by  rail  to  San  Fernando  and  hence  by  gulf 
steamer  to  Brighton  or  La  Brea. 

Those  who  visit  Trinidad  by  the  ships  of  the 
Trinidad  Line — the  only  line  sailing  for  Trinidad 
from  New  York  at  present — will  have  unequaled 
opportunities  for  seeing  this  strange  phenomenon, 
however,  for  the  ships  usually  go  to  San  Fernando 
on  the  outward  voyage  and  stop  for  several  days 
at  Brighton,  loading  asphalt,  on  the  return  trip. 
But  the  journey  by  rail  and  steamer  entails  no 
hardships  or  discomforts  and  affords  a  splendid 
view  of  the  low  country  south  of  Port-of-Spain, 
as  well  as  a  chance  to  see  quaint,  picturesque  San 
Fernando. 

And  San  Fernando  is  well  worth  seeing,  albeit 
a  few  hours  will  suffice  to  "do"  the  town  thorough- 
ly. From  the  water  front  and  railway  station  San 
Fernando  climbs  up  a  steep  hill  and,  like  the  King 
of  France  and  his  men,  no  sooner  does  it  reach 
the  top  than  it  marches  down  again.  And,  not 
content  with  struggling  up  and  down  the  slopes, 
the  queer  little  town  has  burrowed  into  the  hill 
in  spots  and  has  hewn  spaces  for  its  buildings  in  11. e 
limestone  rock  of  conical  Nr.parima  Hill  which 
towers  above  the  town, 


^m#*m*{ 


THE    BLUE    BASIN.  TRINIDAD 


TRINIDAD,  THE  MAGNIFICENT     159 

Sharply  and  at  all  angles  run  the  streets, — as 
if  some  browsing  goat  had  wandered  aimlessly 
about  and  the  streets  had  been  laid  out  in  the 
creature's  tracks;  most  of  the  buildings  are  small, 
flimsy,  and  of  wood,  there  are  few  large  or  impres- 
sive structures,  and  yet  San  Fernando  is  interest- 
ing, for  it  is  the  port  of  the  sugar  district  and 
swarms  with  coolies  until  it  appears  like  a  bit  of 
India  rather  than  a  town  of  the  Antilles. 

Everywhere  the  Hindus  are  in  evidence,  men, 
women,  and  children,  of  all  ages  and  all  degrees, 
from  the  half-clad  field  hand  to  the  silk-robed 
nabob  in  his  motor  car.  Every  occupation,  every 
trade  of  India  is  represented :  silversmiths  hammer- 
ing coins  into  rough  jewelry  on  tiny  anvils  in  the 
doorways  of  their  shops;  vendors  of  fruits,  vege- 
tables, and  what  not  squatting  beside  their  wares 
at  the  wayside ;  shaven-headed  fakirs  in  rags  and 
tatters;  holy  men  with  painted  foreheads  and 
beards  dyed  scarlet;  merchants  with  stores  filled 
with  Benares  brasses,  weird  musical  instruments, 
strange  foods  and  spices,  prayer-wheels,  beads, 
charms,  amulets,  gay-hued  cloths,  wonderful 
embroideries,  crude  images  of  Buddha  and  Brah- 
min gods,  and  a  thousand-and-one  objects  whose 
use  is  known  only  to  the  coolies;  sleek,  well-fed 
planters  who  have  risen  from  lowly  laborers  to 
affluence  and,  robed  in  flowing,  spotless  silks,  drive 
luxuriously  in  costly  motor  cars;  spectacled  gray- 


160  THE  WEST  INDIES 

bearded  wise  men  teaching  their  brown-skinned 
pupils  in  the  shade  of  roadside  trees ;  priests  reading 
aloud  from  the  Koran  to  knots  of  the  faithful  who, 
grave-faced,  listen  in  silence  to  the  words  of  the 
Prophet;  Parsees,  Brahmins,  Hindus,  Mohamme- 
dans,— a  score  of  races,  hundreds  of  castes,  a 
thousand  types  are  to  be  seen.  Unchanged  by 
surroundings,  uninfluenced  by  conditions,  they 
live  the  same  lives,  follow  the  same  customs,  and 
wear  the  same  garments  as  in  far-off  India.  Across 
thousands  of  leagues  of  sea  they  have  brought  their 
beliefs,  their  religions,  their  goods,  their  manners, 
their  foods,  their  gods,  even  the  very  atmosphere 
and  mystery  of  the  East.  Peaceable  they  are, 
thrifty,  hard-working,  law-abiding,  and  to  them 
Trinidad  owes  much  of  its  prosperity  to-day, 
for  they  solved  the  labor  problem  of  the  island. 
Few  have  returned  to  India  when  the  term  of 
their  contracts  ended  and  many  have  become 
well-to-do  merchants  and  planters.  Despised  by 
and  despising  the  negroes,  looked  down  upon  by 
the  whites,  yet  serenely  the  coolies  go  their  ways 
and  mind  their  own  business,  unruffled,  undis- 
turbed, but  in  the  hearts  of  one  and  all — from  low- 
liest laborer,  toiling  in  cane  or  rice  field  for  a  shilling 
a  day,  to  merchant  prince;  from  guttersweep  to 
white-bearded  Moslem  priest — there  is  contempt 
and  scorn  for  the  Christians  and  the  white-skinned 
race  whose  ancestors  were  naked  savages  when  the 


TRINIDAD,  THE  MAGNIFICENT     161 

civilization  of  India  was  hoary  with  the  weight  of 
countless  centuries. 

Some  twenty  miles  from  San  Fernando,  a  charm- 
ing sail  by  the  swift  gulf  steamers  or  an  entrancing 
trip  by  motor  car,  the  long  pier  at  Brighton 
stretches  for  1800  feet  into  the  waters  of  the  gulf. 
To  this  dock  moor  the  great  steamships  of  the 
Trinidad  Line,  while  loading  asphalt,  and  to  it 
also  come  the  ugly  tank  steamers  to  load  with  oil, 
for  Trinidad  is  fast  coming  to  the  fore  as  a  petrole- 
um-producing land,  and  a  number  of  the  largest 
wells  and  many  gigantic  storage  tanks  are  in  the 
immediate  vicinity  of  the  Pitch  Lake. 

Along  the  pier,  and  up  the  hillside  beyond, 
stretch  wire  cables  and  over  these,  slowly,  steadily, 
travels  an  endless  procession  of  great  square  iron 
buckets.  Filled  to  the  brim  with  asphalt,  as  they 
come  rumbling  seaward  from  the  hilltop,  each 
bucket  is  dumped  with  crash  and  bang  into  the 
hold  of  the  waiting  ship  and,  with  scarce  a  halt, 
is  sent  swinging  empty  on  its  mile-long  journey  to 
be  refilled.  Almost  in  a  steady  stream  is  the 
asphalt  poured  into  the  ship,  and  a  thousand  tons 
a  day  are  often  loaded,  with  less  than  a  dozen  negro 
laborers  required  to  accomplish  the  work. 

To  visit  the  lake  it  is  only  necessary  to  follow 
the  cableway  and  its  rattling  buckets,  but  by  all 
means  choose  early  morning  or  late  afternoon  for 
the  trip.  During  the  day  Brighton  is  hot  beyond 


162  THE  WEST  INDIES 

words ;  the  glaring  asphalt  roads  reflect  and  radiate 
the  blazing  sunlight  until  the  air  is  like  a  furnace, 
there  is  not  a  square  inch  of  shade  along  the  way, 
and  a  breath  of  air  is  rare  indeed. 

No  sooner  does  one  set  foot  on  shore  at  Brighton 
than  the  presence  of  vast  quantities  of  asphalt  is 
manifest.  Wave-polished  lumps  of  asphalt  strew 
the  beach  in  place  of  pebbles,  jutting  reefs  of  the 
same  substance  project  from  the  shallows,  black 
ledges  break  the  sandy  stretch  of  shore  and  jut 
from  the  bluffs,  and  everywhere,  among  the  scant 
herbage  and  coarse  grass  of  the  hillside,  are  seen 
the  wrinkled,  rounded,  dull -black  masses,  like  the 
dead  bodies  of  huge  pachyderms  half -buried  in  the 
earth. 

At  the  summit  of  the  hill  stand  the  big  sheds 
of  the  refinery,  the  machine  shops,  the  engine 
houses,  the  pumping  station,  and  the  other  works 
of  the  asphalt  company,  and  just  beyond,  in  a 
slight  hollow,  lies  the  world-famous  lake, 
f  Never  was  spot  more  misleadingly  named,  for 
the  Pitch  Lake  has  no  resemblance  to  a  lake,  and 
neither  is  it  pitch.  Far  more  does  it  appear  like 
a  peat  bog,  or  a  partly  dried  swamp,  for  covering 
an  area  of  some  125  acres  is  an  uneven  expanse  of 
dull  brownish  black,  partly  overgrown  with  coarse 
dry  grass,  low  brush,  and  weeds,  and  with  pools  of 
stagnant  water  filling  the  hollows  and  depressions 
of  its  surface. 


ENTERING   THE    BOCAS,   TRINIDAD 


DIGGING    ASPHALT,    TRINIDAD 


TRINIDAD,  THE  MAGNIFICENT    163 

Across  it  meander  uneven,  wavering  railway 
tracks,  here  and  there  groups  of  negroes  are  work- 
ing busily  with  pick  and  shovel,  and  strings  of 
cars  stand  waiting  for  their  loads.  As  soon  as  the 
cars  are  filled  they  are  hauled  creaking  and  com- 
plaining towards  the  sheds,  another  train  comes 
dashing  down  the  incline  with  roar  and  clatter,  and 
noisily  the  asphalt  is  tumbled  into  the  cars  by  the 
black  laborers.  About  the  borders  of  the  "lake" 
are  the  parched,  sere  hills,  merging  into  thorny, 
scrubby  jungle,  above  which  rise  groves  of  stunted 
palms,  and,  looming  dark  against  the  sky  on  the 
nearby  ridges,  are  the  great  derricks  and  monstrous 
ugly  tanks  of  the  oil  wells.  No  scene  could  be  less 
attractive,  less  picturesque,  or  more  prosaic,  and 
yet  the  spot  is  one  of  the  wonders  of  the  world, 
a  seemingly  inexhaustible  storehouse  of  one  of 
civilization's  most  useful  substances,  a  source  of 
vast  revenue  for  the  company  which  controls  it, 
and  the  most  lucrative  of  Trinidad's  resources. 

Much  to  the  surprise  of  many  visitors,  the  sur- 
face of  the  asphalt  is  not  soft  nor  sticky.  One 
may  walk  across  it  in  perfect  safety,  save  for  the 
danger  of  wetting  one's  shoes  in  the  pools  of  water. 
It  is  firm  and  solid  enough  to  support  the  weight  of 
tracks  and  cars;  when  dug  by  pick  and  shovel,  it 
breaks  away  from  the  mass  in  firm,  hard  lumps, 
with  a  bright,  smooth  surface  like  dull  brown  coal, 
and  it  may  be  freely  handled  without  even  soiling 


1 04  THE  WEST  INDIES 

one's  hands.  And  yet  the  vast  mass  of  asphalt  is 
not  solid.  If  left  in  one  spot  the  rails  soon  sink 
from  sight;  if  a  man  stands  immovable  for  a  short 
time  his  feet  sink  into  the  surface,  and  the  holes  and 
pits,  from  which  the  material  is  removed,  soon 
disappear  and  are  rilled  with  fresh  asphalt;  even 
within  the  holds  of  the  ships,  the  coarse  separate 
lumps  become  transformed  into  a  solid  homogene- 
ous mass  ere  the  vessels  reach  New  York;  and 
which  must  be  dug  out  by  pick  and  shovel  exactly 
as  from  the  lake  itself. 

How  deep  beneath  the  surface  the  asphalt 
extends  no  one  can  say,  but  borings  have  been 
made  for  hundreds  of  feet  without  finding  its 
limit.  As  fast  as  removed  it  is  replaced  by  nature, 
and,  for  miles  about,  the  asphalt  crops  up  amid 
the  jungle  that  covers  the  land,  while  across  the 
gulf,  in  Venezuela,  is  another  and  even  larger 
"lake,"  and  it  is  not  unlikely  that  the  deposit 
extends  beneath  the  water  from  shore  to  shore. 
Hundreds  of  thousands  of  tons  have  been  shipped 
away  annually  for  many  years,  with  little  or  no 
apparent  effect  upon  the  lake,  and  even  if  not 
absolutely  inexhaustible,  yet  there  is  enough 
asphalt  in  Trinidad  to  supply  the  world  for  many 
years  to  come. 

But  it  is  not,  as  many  suppose,  of  volcanic  origin. 
It  is  merely  one  of  the  products  of  nature's  labora- 
tory, a  substance  formed  from  vegetation  that 


TRINIDAD,  THE  MAGNIFICENT    165 

grew  and  died  in  a  morass  when  the  world  was 
young;  a  treasure  hidden  in  the  bowels  of  the 
earth,  to  serve  man's  needs,  countless  millions  of 
years  ere  the  first  man  trod  our  planet.  The  very 
presence  of  the  asphalt  proves  the  antiquity  of 
Trinidad.  There  are  no  indications  of  volcanic 
activity, — even  of  extinct  craters, — on  the  island, 
and  the  so-called  "Mud  Volcanoes"  of  Princes 
Town  are  merely  the  puny  outbursts  of  natural 
gas  from  the  petroleum-bearing  beds  beneath  the 
surface  of  the  earth.  A  few  years  ago  the  mineral 
riches  hidden  in  Trinidad's  bosom  were  undreamed 
of,  but  to-day  oil  wells  by  the  score  are  pouring 
forth  their  riches  to  swell  the  island's  wealth. 
Above  the  giant  forest  trees  rise  the  black  derricks, 
the  wilderness  echoes  to  the  clang  of  drills  and  the 
clatter  and  clank  of  pumps,  and  pipe  lines  twist, 
like  huge  black  serpents,  through  the  jungles. 

Yet  the  surface  of  this  land  has  been  barely 
scratched,  only  an  infinitesimal  part  of  its  resources 
have  been  developed,  and  untold  fortunes  still  lie 
unknown,  unsuspected,  in  its  hills  and  valleys, 
its  mountains  and  its  forests;  it  is  a  land  of  vast 
promise,  of  marvelous  opportunities, — truly,  the 
Magnificent  Isle. 

Aside  from  Trinidad's  scenes  and  sights  there 
are  many  other  places  of  great  interest  and  beauty 
within  easy  reach  from  Port-of- Spain. 

Steamers  run  regularly  to  Ciudad  Bolivar,  in 


166  THE  WEST  INDIES 

the  heart  of  Venezuela,  and  an  excursion  by  one  of 
these  boats  up  the  mighty  Orinoco  and  through  the 
midst  of  the  untamed,  primeval  South  American 
wilderness  is  a  veritable  trip  through  nature's 
wonderland. 

Then  there  is  Margarita,  that  little-known 
mountainous  island  off  Venezuela,  and  from  whose 
waters  a  million  dollars'  worth  of  pearls  are  taken 
yearly,  while  still  more  interesting  is  the  Dutch 
island  of  Curasao. 

CURASAO 

Like  a  bit  of  Holland  whisked  bodily  over  sea 
and  dropped  down  in  the  Caribbean  is  Curacao. 
Upon  a  landlocked,  clover-leaf-shaped  harbor 
stands  the  town  of  Willemstadt  and  reached  only 
by  a  narrow  strait  between  two  ancient  forts 
so  close  together  that  the  woodeny  Dutch  soldiers 
of  the  garrisons  can  converse  across  the  harbor 
entrance.  But  more  interesting  than  the  quaint 
old  forts  upon  the  bare  brown  hills  is  the  bridge 
which  bars  the  channel,  for  it  is  a  bridge  of  boats, 
and,  when  a  vessel  leaves  or  enters  the  harbor, 
the  novel  causeway  is  moved  aside  by  the  simple 
method  of  towing  one  end  of  the  string  of  pontoons 
with  a  steam  launch. 

Once  within  the  harbor  the  bridge  is  forgotten 
at  sight  of  the  town.  Pink,  yellow,  blue,  green, 


THE    HIGH   WOODS.   TRINIDAD 


TRINIDAD,  THE  MAGNIFICENT    167 

red — all  the  colors  of  the  rainbow — are  the  houses 
and  buildings,  whose  steep,  tiled  roofs,  dormer 
windows,  and  quaint  ornamentation  appear  so  in- 
congruous, so  out  of  place,  so  thoroughly  Dutch, 
that  the  visitor  is  tempted  to  pinch  himself  to 
make  sure  he  is  really  awake  and  in  his  right  mind. 
All  that  is  needed  are  a  few  storks  on  the  roof- 
tops and  a  windmill  or  two,  but  there  is  no  work 
for  windmills  to  do  in  Curacao  and  ostriches  are 
more  useful  than  storks.  In  other  words,  Cu- 
racao's manufacturing  and  agricultural  resources 
are  nil,  and  ostrich  farming  bids  fair  to  be  the 
island's  most  lucrative  business.  Barren,  sterile, 
and  dry,  Curacao  offers  no  inducements  to  the 
husbandman  and,  aside  from  aloes,  a  few  vege- 
tables, and  a  little  fruit,  nothing  is  grown.  Upon 
its  trade  and  commerce  Curacao  has  always  de- 
pended, for  it  is  a  free  port,  and  its  location  and 
perfect  harbor  have  made  it  a  busy,  important  port, 
as  well  as  a  notorious  spot  for  ambitious  and  dis- 
gruntled Latin- Americans  to  hatch  out  revolution- 
ary plots  in  safety.  Recently  the  ostrich  farms 
have  been  established  and  are  doing  well,  but  the 
strangest  of  the  island's  industries — the  last  busi- 
ness one  would  look  for  in  this  out-of-the-way, 
picturesque  town — is  the  big  publishing  house  and 
book  store  of  Betancourt.  There  is  little  to  be 
seen  in  Curacao  outside  of  the  town,  for  while 
forty  miles  long  and  eight  miles  wide  it  is  sparsely 


168  THE  WEST  INDIES 

inhabited  and  its  surface  is,  for  the  most  part,  most 
forbidding  and  unattractive, — a  parched,  sunburnt, 
mountainous  land  without  stream,  lake,  or  spring, 
and  how  the  giant  race  of  Indians,  which  old 
Amerigo  Vespucci  claimed  to  have  found  here, 
ever  eked  out  an  existence  is  a  puzzle. 

But  the  town  is  interesting,  and  as  a  diminutive 
tram-line,  with  donkeys  for  motive  power,  runs 
through  the  streets  and  to  the  suburb,  known  as 
Otrabanda,  across  the  harbor,  the  visitor  may 
cover  most  of  the  sights  with  little  exertion. 
Many  of  the  streets  are  wide  and  smoothly  paved, 
but  many  more  are  quaint  lanes  with  pavements  of 
rough  cobbles  and  so  narrow  that  the  projecting 
balconies  of  the  houses  almost  meet  above  one's 
head.  And  if  the  picturesque  Dutch  town  seems 
incongruous  here  in  the  tropics,  even  more  strik- 
ingly out  of  place  seem  the  people  who  throng  its 
streets,  for  one  looks  in  vain  for  the  baggy  panta- 
loons, the  wooden  shoes,  and  the  stiff  starched  caps 
which  befit  Curacao's  byways.  Dutchmen  there 
are,  and  Dutchwomen  too,  but  far  more  numer- 
ous are  the  black,  brown,  and  yellow-skinned 
natives  of  African  blood,  in  bright  turbans,  gaudy 
kerchiefs,  and  blazing  colors,  while  the  chatter 
one  hears  is  not  Dutch  or  English,  not  French  or 
Spanish,  but  a  marvelous  jargon,  a  language 
peculiar  to  Curagao,  a  mixture  of  Dutch,  Spanish, 
English,  Indian,  and  negro,  known  as  Papiamento. 


TRINIDAD,  THE  MAGNIFICENT    169 

TOBAGO 

Far  closer  to  Trinidad  than  Curacao,  only  eigh- 
teen miles  distant  to  be  exact,  lies  another  island 
which,  if  it  lacks  the  quaint  and  "Dutchy"  at- 
mosphere of  Willemstadt,  is  fully  as  interesting  and 
far  more  beautiful. 

This  is  Tobago,  the  scene  of  Robinson  Crusoe's 
story,  the  one-time  residence  of  John  Paul  Jones, 
and  an  island  of  supreme  beauty  whose  stormy 
history  is  without  a  parallel  in  the  blood-stained 
annals  of  the  West  Indies. 

No  doubt  it  will  come  as  a  surprise  to  many  to 
learn  that  Tobago  is  the  isle  on  which  poor  Robin- 
son dwelt  with  Man  Friday,  for  Juan  Fernandez 
has  been  so  long  associated  with  Defoe's  hero  that 
it  is  hard  to  separate  the  real  from  the  unreal,  to 
disentangle  the  fiction  from  the  fact. 

But  if  those  who  are  skeptical  will  but  refresh 
their  memories  and  read  again  the  story  of  Robin- 
son Crusoe,  all  doubts  will  be  dispelled. 

Does  not  our  boyhood's  idol  relate  how  he  set 
sail  from  Brazil  for  Africa?  Does  he  not  state 
that  his  ship  was  blown  off  its  course  and,  after 
an  observation,  he  learned  he  was  in  "Latitude 
eleven  degrees  north,  beyond  the  coast  of  Guiana, 
toward  the  River  Oronoque"?  Does  he  not  tell 
how  he  strove  to  reach  the  "English  Islands, "  but 
was  wrecked  on  his  desert  isle?  Is  it  then  con- 


i;o  THE  WEST  INDIES 

ceivable  that  the  ship  was  blown  completely  around 
Cape  Horn  to  Juan  Fernandez,  or  that  the  land  on 
which  he  was  wrecked  could,  by  any  stretch  of 
the  imagination,  be  other  than  one  of  the  Lesser 
Antilles?  And,  admitting  this,  what  island  could 
it  have  been  but  Tobago,  the  only  isle  from  whose 
hills  the  castaway  could  have  peered  forth  across 
the  muddy  waters  of  the  "Gulph  of  the  Oro- 
noque, "  to  which  he  refers,  and  see  the  faint  out- 
lines of  the  "Island  of  Trinidad, "  as  stated  in  his 
story? 

Unquestionably  Alexander  Selkirk  was  ma- 
rooned on  Juan  Fernandez — such  is  an  historical 
fact — but  Defoe,  in  writing  his  immortal  tale, 
founded  on  Selkirk's  life,  placed  his  fictitious 
hero  on  a  much  more  suitable  and  promising 
spot. 

The  justice  of  Tobago's  claim  to  be  called  "Cru- 
soe's Island"  is  unquestionable;  the  natives  can 
even  show  you  the  cave  wherein  he  dwelt  and  the 
imprint  of  Friday's  feet  in  the  rocks,  and  the 
visitor  to  the  lovely  isle  will  wonder  why  the  casta- 
way ever  deserted  it. 

Surely  one  who  was  "Monarch  of  all  he  sur- 
veyed" on  Tobago  and  "Whose  right  there  was 
none  to  dispute"  could  ask  for  no  fairer  kingdom 
in  which  to  rule  and  pass  his  days  in  peace,  even 
though  his  subjects  were  but  naked  savages,  wild 
goats,  and  bright-hued  parrots. 


TRINIDAD,  THE  MAGNIFICENT    171 

Like  its  larger  neighbor,  Trinidad,  the  island  of 
Tobago  is  merely  a  bit  of  the  South  American  con- 
tinent and  with  much  the  same  fauna  and  flora; 
but  here  all  resemblance  ends. 

Neither  lofty  nor  massive  is  Tobago,  its  highest 
peak,  Pigeon  Hill,  rising  scarcely  two  thousand 
feet  above  the  sea,  and  it  can  hardly  be  called 
mountainous  as  compared  to  the  other  islands. 
From  its  low,  sandy  southern  coast  it  rises  by 
degrees,  through  level  and  undulating  plains  and 
conical  hills  amid  bowl-like  valleys,  to  the  forested 
mountain-ranges  of  the  north,  and  through  nearly 
every  vale  there  flows  a  stream  of  sparkling  crystal 
water. 

Wonderfully  varied  and  attractive  is  its  coast 
line,  with  crescent  sand  beaches  bordering  shel- 
tered coves;  outlying  verdure-draped  rocky  islets 
and  wooded  cays;  surf -washed  reefs,  protecting 
secluded  lagoons  with  arching  trees  above  the 
placid  waters,  and  precipitous  headlands,  guarding 
hidden,  landlocked  harbors  within  which,  in  days 
long  past,  lurked  many  a  fierce  pirate  and  bold 
sea-rover.  Even  the  size  of  Tobago  adds  to  its 
charm,  for  it  is  neither  so  large  as  to  be  overwhelm- 
ing nor  so  small  as  to  be  insignificant,  and  yet  so 
admirably  proportioned  is  the  island,  on  such  an 
extensive  scale  has  nature  molded  the  landscape, 
that  it  gives  one  the  impression  of  a  miniature 
continent  rather  than  an  island. 


172  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Its  greatest  length  is  but  twenty-six  miles;  its 
greatest  width  but  eight  miles,  and  much  of  its 
73,000  acres  is  still  virgin  forest  teeming  with 
furred  and  feathered  life.  Everywhere  wonder- 
fully luxuriant  vegetation  covers  the  land  from 
sea  to  mountain  top,  and  everywhere  the  fertile 
soil  yields  bounteous  crops  of  cocoa,  rubber,  fruits, 
and  cotton,  while  along  the  coasts  and  on  the 
lowlands  are  countless  thousands  of  cocoa  palms, 
vast  groves  of  smooth  gray  trunks  and  softly 
clashing  fronds,  like  a  labyrinth  of  columns  sup- 
porting a  canopy  of  green  and  gold. 

Upon  the  southern  coast  is  the  capital  and  only 
town  of  any  size  or  importance, — the  port  of 
Scarborough.  Nestling  at  the  base  of  a  hill  450 
feet  in  height  and  which  is  crowned  with  the  ruins 
of  Fort  King  George,  is  the  town,  a  place  of  some 
3000  inhabitants  and  a  wide-awake,  prosperous, 
self-respecting  little  spot.  The  government  build- 
ings are  the  most  prominent  and  interesting  build- 
ings in  the  town  and  there  are  several  notable 
churches  and  many  well-stocked  stores,  but  To- 
bago's attractions  are  in  the  country  and  not  in 
Scarborough. 

With  a  delightful,  healthy  climate;  outside  the 
hurricane  zone;  with  no  lurking  menace  of  a  vol- 
canic outburst  or  destructive  earthquake;  no 
swamps ;  no  poisonous  snakes ;  its  magnificent  scen- 
ery and  its  air  of  quiet,  restful  peace,  Tobago  should 


TRINIDAD,  THE  MAGNIFICENT    173 

be  an  ideal  spot  for  a  winter  resort,  once  its  attrac- 
tions are  known. 

From  end  to  end,  from  coast  to  coast,  one  may 
wander  in  Tobago  with  perfect  safety  and  secu- 
rity, although  the  roads  are  none  too  good,  and 
many  a  river  must  be  forded  in  going  from  place  to 
place. 

Fought  over  for  centuries  by  French,  Spanish, 
British,  Dutch,  and  Caribs,  and  often  deserted 
for  scores  of  years  at  a  time,  it  is  remarkable  that 
the  early  settlers  found  time  to  do  anything,  save 
spill  one  another's  blood.  Surely  they  must  have 
been  a  stout,  hardy,  energetic,  persistent  lot,  for, 
between  battles,  they  tilled  the  soil,  built  roads, 
constructed  forts,  and  accomplished  much.  To-day 
one  may  find  the  ruins  of  their  forts  and  buildings, 
their  houses  and  their  mills,  overgrown  with  brush 
and  creepers,  and  sections  still  remain  of  the  paved 
highway  which  once  spanned  the  island  from  shore 
to  shore. 

Strange  and  thrilling  indeed  would  be  the  tales 
these  ancient  ruins  could  tell,  for  many  a  fierce  and 
bloody  conflict  raged  about  them,  but  the  crum- 
bling stones  and  the  rusting  guns  are  silent,  the 
deeds  of  cruelty  and  valor,  which  reddened  To- 
bago's soil,  are  but  memories  of  the  past,  and  such 
names  as  Bloody  Bay,  Man-o'-War  Bay,  and 
Englishmen's  Bay  are  all  that  remain  to  remind  us 
of  the  island's  turbulent  history. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

SANTO  DOMINGO,   THE  HISTORIC 

MANY  a  name  has  this  island  borne.  To  the 
simple  Indians  it  was  Haiti — the  "High  Land"; 
to  the  Spaniard  it  was  Hispaniola;  in  later  years 
it  became  Santo  Domingo ;  and,  torn  by  revolutions, 
drenched  with  blood,  and  divided  between  French 
and  Spanish,  the  western  third  assumed  its  ancient 
name  of  Haiti,  while  the  other  two  thirds  was 
christened  the  Dominican  Republic.  Also  has  it 
been  called  the  "Isle  of  Misrule"  and  "The  Land 
of  Revolutions,"  while  it  is  commonly  referred  to 
as  "The  Black  Republic." 

But  most  appropriately  may  it  be  called  "The 
Island  where  Time  has  Stood  Still, "  for  the  visitor 
to  Santo  Domingo  finds  a  land  redolent  of  the 
distant  East,  scenes  unaltered  through  four  hun- 
dred years  and  more,  and  surroundings  contempo- 
raneous with  Columbus  and  the  conquistadores. 
We  may  gaze  seaward  from  the  very  spot  whereon 
the  great  discoverer  sat  and  watched  his  flagship 
beaten  to  pieces  on  the  reefs;  we  may  push  aside 
the  brush  and  vines  and  find  the  crumbling  founda- 
'74 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   175 

tions  of  the  first  European  settlement  on  American 
soil;  we  may  land  upon  the  sandy  shores  of  the 
self-same  cove  where  the  first  European  blood  was 
shed  in  battle  with  the  Indians;  we  may  wander 
through  streets  whose  identical  pavements  have 
rung  to  the  tramp  of  mail-clad  men  led  by  Pizarro, 
Balboa,  Cortez,  De  Soto,  De  Leon,  and  many  a 
famed  hidalgo,  and  we  may  still  see  their  embla- 
zoned arms  carved  in  the  enduring  keystones  of 
their  fortress-like  houses.  We  may  stroll  through 
the  ruined  aisles  of  the  first  university  in  the  New 
World,  where  youth  was  taught  the  three  "R's" 
a  century  and  more  ere  the  Pilgrims  landed  at 
Plymouth  Rock;  we  may  see  the  very  dungeon 
wherein  Columbus  was  cast,  a  prisoner  in  chains, 
and  we  may  kneel  on  the  same  worn  flagging 
pressed  by  his  knees  at  many  a  mass  in  the  great  ca- 
thedral where  his  bones  still  rest  in  their  leaden 
casket.  Truly  is  Santo  Domingo  the  most  historic 
spot  in  America,  the  cradle  of  European  civilization 
in  the  New  World,  and  the  theater  of  the  most  awful 
massacres,  the  most  atrocious  cruelties,  the  most 
appalling  acts  of  barbarism,  inhumanity,  hatred, 
revenge,  and  fiendish  savagery  the  world  has  ever 
seen.  Second  largest  of  the  West  Indies,  richest 
and  most  fertile  of  the  Antilles,  is  Santo  Domingo. 
Marvelously  beautiful  is  its  scenery,  stupendous 
its  mountains,  vast  its  plains,  wonderful  its  valleys. 
Through  it  flow  immense  rivers,  within  its  borders 


1 76  THE  WEST  INDIES 

are  lakes  like  inland  seas,  immeasurable  forests 
clothe  its  surface,  about  its  shores  are  islets  larger 
than  many  of  the  Lesser  Antilles,  its  peaks  are  the 
highest  in  the  West  Indies,  and  its  streams  liter- 
ally flow  through  golden  sands. 

But  with  all  its  beauties,  its  resources,  its  riches, 
its  historic  interest,  much  of  Santo  Domingo  is  as 
primitive,  as  backward,  as  crude,  as  four  centuries 
ago.  Few  indeed  are  the  spots  where  the  stranger 
may  stop — even  for  a  night — without  inconven- 
iences, discomforts,  or  even  hardships.  But  for- 
tunately this  is  not  necessary ;  he  who  would  visit 
Santo  Domingo  need  not  forego  the  pleasure  and 
the  interest  for  lack  of  accommodations,  for  the 
steamers  of  the  Clyde  West  Indian  Line  visit 
every  port  of  importance,  they  remain  long  enough 
in  each  to  permit  the  passengers  to  see  all  the  sights 
ashore,  or  even  make  railway  journeys  to  inland 
towns,  and  the -traveler  who  makes  the  round 
voyage  is  independent  of  life  ashore  and  dwells  in 
comfort  and  ease  aboard  ship. 
j  Monte  Christi,  the  first  port  of  call,  is  a  far  from 
attractive  spot,  and,  being  situated  in  the  most 
desolate  and  uninviting  portion  of  the  island,  it  is 
apt  to  convey  a  false  and  disappointing  impression. 

Directly  from  the  water  rises  a  lofty  hill,  its 
face  sliced  off  in  a  precipice  of  glaring  red  and  yel- 
low; far  in  the  distance  rise  massive  mountain 
ranges,  and  at  the  foot  of  a  broad,  sloping,  dead- 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   177 

green  plain  are  a  few  unpainted  wooden  huts,  a 
warehouse  or  two  of  corrugated  iron,  and  a  long 
flimsy  pier. 

Surrounded  by  mud  flats  and  mangrove  swamps 
and  infested  by  myriads  of  bloodthirsty  mosquitoes, 
the  port  of  Monte  Christi  is  untenable  for  civilized 
white  men  and  is  scarcely  more  than  a  landing 
place  inhabited  by  a  few  negroes  and  colored 
laborers.  From  the  port  a  carriage  road  and  a 
mule  tramway  line  run  back  to  the  hills  and  here, 
on  the  higher  land,  is  the  town  proper.  But, 
aside  from  the  fact  that  it  is  the  outlet  of  the  vast 
and  fertile  Yaqui  Valley  and  the  breeding  place 
of  most  of  the  revolutions  which  have  swept  the 
republic  like  epidemics  and  with  amazing  fre- 
quency, Monte  Christi  is  of  little  importance,  and 
of  less  interest.  Eastward  from  this  forlorn  spot 
the  aspect  of  the  island  rapidly  changes.  Soon 
the  barren  dun  hills  give  place  to  slopes  rich  with 
verdure,  luxuriant  forests  grow  to  the  very  shores, 
and  huge  green-clad  mountains  tower,  in  range 
after  range,  as  far  as  eye  can  see. 

Wooded  headlands  and  deep  jungle-bordered 
coves  are  passed  in  endless  succession,  and  on  the 
shores  of  one  of  these  bays  Columbus  founded 
Isabella,  the  first  European  city  in  the  New  World. 
To-day  only  a  few  stones,  hidden  in  the  brush,  a 
crumbling  wall,  and  a  commemorative  pillar  mark 
the  site  of  this  historic  spot. 


178  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Fifty  miles  east  of  here  towers  the  perfect  sym- 
metrical cone  of  Isabella  la  Torre,  and  at  its  base, 
upon  a  jutting  hilly  peninsula,  lies  the  town  of 
Puerto  Plata.  Hard  would  it  be  to  find  a  prettier 
sight  than  Puerto  Plata  viewed  from  the  sea. 
Up  from  the  shores  of  the  semicircular  bay 
stretches  the  town,  its  red  roofs  gleaming  'mid 
myriads  of  palms,  like  poppies  in  a  field  of  grain; 
to  the  left,  the  mellow  pink  and  yellow-tinted 
antique  fort  upon  the  headland,  and  to  the  right, 
the  crescent  sweep  of  green  mountains  overtopped 
by  the  stupendous  cone  whose  cloud-veiled  summit, 
three  thousand  feet  above  the  sea,  no  human  foot 
has  ever  trod. 

From  the  shore  a  long  iron  pier  extends  into  the 
bay,  and  so  shallow  is  the  water  that,  to  load  and 
unload  the  lighters,  the  teams  are  driven  far  into 
the  sea,  where,  with  the  water  washing  about  the 
horses'  hips  and  the  bottoms  of  the  carts,  the  boxes, 
bales,  and  barrels  are  transferred  from  the  cargo 
craft  to  the  vehicles.  Puerto  Plata  is  neat,  well 
kept,  and  with  straight,  fairly  wide,  smooth  streets, 
and  is  so  brilliant  with  color,  so  plentifully  sprinkled 
with  palms  and  verdure,  so  well  supplied  with 
electric  lights,  and  so  bright  and  shining  that  one's 
preconceived  ideas  of  Santo  Domingo  are  dropped 
like  a  cast-off  garment  as  soon  as  one  steps  ashore. 

Few  of  the  buildings  are  pretentious,  but  there  are 
two  large  club-houses,  one  or  two  good  hotels, — as 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   179 

hotels  go  in  the  tropics, — some  fine  churches,  a 
number  of  beautiful  residences,  and  a  very  attrac- 
tive plaza,  surrounded  by  palms  and  shade  trees, 
and  the  government  buildings.  There  is  also  a 
large,  well-conducted  military  hospital,  to  the 
efficiency  of  which  the  author  can  testify,  as  he 
spent  over  two  months  therein. 

About  Puerto  Plata  there  are  many  charming 
drives  into  the  outlying  districts,  and  here  one 
sees,  for  the  first  time,  the  riding  bulls  which  are  a 
distinctive  feature  of  the  island.  Long-legged, 
swift,  and  sure  of  foot,  and  bred  especially  for  use 
as  saddle  animals,  these  cattle  are  very  different 
from  our  own  slow-plodding  oxen,  and  throughout 
the  republic  they  are  in  universal  use.  It  seems 
strange  indeed  to  see  a  tiny  boy,  a  woman  or  a 
young  girl  astride  a  huge  needle-pointed,  long- 
horned  bull  and  trotting  through  city  streets  or 
along  a  country  road,  but  the  creatures  are  gentle 
and  easily  "steered"  by  a  single  rein  attached  to 
a  ring  in  the  nose,  and  while  their  gait  is  uncom- 
fortably jolty  at  first,  one  soon  becomes  accustomed 
to  it  and  finds  the  bulls  as  easy  riding  as  any 
equine  mount. 

But,  as  road  destroyers,  the  riding  bulls  of  Santo 
Domingo  surpass  the  most  ponderous  motor  trucks. 
Even  at  their  best  the  country  roads  of  the  island 
are  scarce  worthy  of  the  name,  and  when  it  rains 
they  are  transformed  into  veritable  streams  of 


iSo  THE  WEST  INDIES 

mud.  As  the  bulls  have  a  peculiar  habit  of  step- 
ping in  one  another's  tracks, — like  Indians  follow- 
ing a  trail, — the  depressions  in  the  roads  soon  be- 
come deep  mud  holes  and,  when  the  rain  ceases,  and 
the  earth  dries,  the  highways  become  an  endless 
succession  of  transverse  hills  and  hollows  baked  as 
hard  as  concrete  by  the  sun.  From  hole  to  hole 
the  bulls,  horses,  and  mules  leap  like  gigantic 
rabbits  across  the  intervening  ridges,  each  passing 
animal  adding  a  little  to  the  depth  of  the  three-foot 
gullies,  until  the  "highways"  look  like  battle- 
fields in  which  opposing  armies  had  intrenched 
themselves.  And  this  is  no  exaggeration,  no  fanci- 
ful description  of  the  interior  thoroughfares  of  the 
Dominican  Republic.  No  words  could  convey 
an  adequate  idea  of  their  condition ;  they  have  been 
used,  worn,  and  neglected  for  four  hundred  years 
and  are  abominable  beyond  description. 

Having  traversed  them,  one  no  longer  wonders 
why  this  marvelously  rich  land  is  undeveloped, 
neglected,  and  much  of  it  absolutely  uninhabited 
and  unknown.  Until  the  country  is  provided 
with  roads  over  which  it  is  possible  to  transport 
goods,  it  will  remain  in  its  present  backward  state, 
for  the  lack  of  transportation  facilities  is  even 
more  inimical  to  its  progress  than  the  revolutions. 

The  forests  are  filled  with  mahogany,  lancewood, 
cedar,  satinwood,  lignum  vitas,  and  other  valuable 
timbers;  vast  groves  of  long-leafed  pine  cover  the 


A    RIDING    BULL,    SAN    DOMINGO 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   181" 

interior  hills  for  hundreds  of  miles  and  mineral 
riches  abound,  while  every  tropical-  and  many 
temperate-zone  products  grow  luxuriantly.  But 
it  is  hopeless  to  endeavor  to  exploit  such  resources, 
useless  to  ask  capital  to  invest,  when,  to  haul  a 
mahogany  log  to  the  coast  costs  more  than  a  dozen 
logs  are  worth;  when,  to  get  out  pine  lumber  en- 
tails a  greater  expense  than  to  import  such  materi- 
als from  the  States;  when  the  entire  revenue  of  a 
gold  mine  would  be  required  to  provide  haulage  to 
a  copper  mine. 

In  some  districts  much  has  been  done  to  over- 
come this  deplorable  condition,  and  from  Puerto 
Plata  a  railway  is  in  operation  across  the  moun- 
tains to  Santiago  de  los  Caballeros.  Indeed 
Puerto  Plata's  chief  importance  lies  in  the  fact 
that  it  is  the  seaward  terminal  of  this  railroad, 
which  taps  the  vast  fertile  Cibao  district  of  the 
high  interior  tableland.  And  a  truly  remarkable 
railway  it  is,  although  but  forty-two  miles  in 
length,  for  in  the  first  fifteen  miles  it  climbs  a 
mountain  range  two  thousand  feet  in  height  by 
grades  so  steep  that  four  locomotives  and  rack  and 
pinion  are  required  to  make  the  ascent.  Even 
then  the  mountain  still  towers  high  above,  and 
through  it  the  railway  makes  its  way  by  a  tunnel 
nearly  one  thousand  feet  in  length,  to  come  forth, 
on  the  farther  side  of  the  range,  on  almost  level 
land.  Many  years  and  a  vast  amount  of  labor  and 


182  THE  WEST  INDIES 

capital  were  expended  in  the  construction  of  this 
road,  which  was  commenced  in  1893  and  was  not 
completed  until  1897,  during  which  time  it  changed 
hands  several  times,  with  the  result  that  it  is  a  sort 
of  international  road,  the  capital  having  been  fur- 
nished by  the  Dutch,  most  of  the  construction  being 
done  by  Belgians,  the  bridges  built  by  British,  and 
the  rolling  stock  made  in  the  United  States,  and, 
to  complete  its  cosmopolitan  make-up,  it  is  owned 
by  the  Dominicans  and  operated  by  Americans. 

Santiago,  the  inland  terminus  of  this  railway, 
is  an  interesting  and  important  town  in  the  center 
of  the  coffee  and  tobacco  district  and,  with  the 
exception  of  the  capital,  is  the  largest  city  in  the 
republic,  with  a  population  of  about  forty-five 
thousand.  Originally  founded  in  1504,  by  thirty 
Spanish  gentlemen  of  noble  birth,  or  "caballcros, " 
from  which  fact  the  city  took  its  name  by  special 
permission  of  the  king,  Santiago  has  undergone 
many  vicissitudes  in  its  four  centuries  of  existence. 
Sacked  by  pirates,  fired  by  revolutionists,  and  the 
storm  center  of  innumerable  battles,  yet  it  still 
remains  a  prosperous,  wealthy,  dignified  old  town. 
Many  of  its  inhabitants  are  far  from  being  "ca- 
balleros"  to-day,  yet  there  are  few  of  its  leading 
families  who  cannot  trace  their  ancestry  in  un- 
broken line  from  the  proud  hidalgo  founders  of 
the  city,  and  in  many  a  Santiago  home  are  the 
Toledo  blades,  the  damascened  armor,  and  other 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   183 

warlike  accouterments  of  forbears  who  sailed  with 
Columbus  in  his  caravels. 

Moreover,  Santiago  is  a  "white  town,"  and  while 
many  of  its  people  are  suspiciously  brown  yet  there 
is  no  hint  of  the  "black  republic."  But,  for  that 
matter,  this  term,  as  applied  to  the  Spanish  portion 
of  Santo  Domingo,  is  a  misnomer  due  to  ignorance, 
for,  unlike  Haiti, — which  is  black  beyond  words  in 
morals,  history,  and  color  of  its  people, — the 
Dominican  Republic  is  not  even  overwhelmingly 
colored  and,  save  in  its  coast  towns,  negroes  are 
in  the  minority  and  a  large  percentage  of  its  people 
are  of  purest  Castilian  blood. 

A  wonderful  eye  for  beauty  and  health  did  those 
thirty  long-dead  Spanish  gentlemen  possess,  for 
they  builded  their  city  upon  a  high  bluff  overlook- 
ing the  broad  Yaqui  River,  in  a  spot  blessed  with  a 
healthy,  delightful  climate  of  everlasting  spring. 
Within  its  confines  are  three  fine  churches,  a  great 
cathedral,  a  beautiful  plaza,  the  governor's  and 
municipal  palaces,  an  institute,  and  innumerable 
massive,  imposing  residences,  many  of  which  have 
remained  unaltered  for  four  hundred  years. 

All  about  Santiago  gold  occurs,  and  many  of  the 
natives  make  an  easy  livelihood  by  washing  out 
dust  and  nuggets  from  the  streams. 

It  was  in  this  neighborhood  that  the  Spaniards 
first  found  gold  in  quantities.  Thinking  they 
had  discovered  the  long-sought,  fabulous  district 


i84  THE  WEST  INDIES 

of  Cibao,  the  town  of  Santo  Tom  as  was  founded  by 
Columbus  in  1494;  and  the  Dons  flocked  to  the  new 
land  of  promise  by  hundreds. 

Many  a  vast  fortune  was  made  from  the  Cibao's 
golden  sands,  and  for  many  years  a  steady  stream 
of  treasure  flowed  from  Hispaniola  into  the  coffers 
of  Spain.  But  to-day  Santo  Tomas  is  almost 
forgotten, — an  unimportant  little  town, — no  ex- 
tensive mining  operations  are  carried  on,  and  yet 
the  treasure  is  still  there  and,  even  by  crude,  spo- 
radic, native  methods,  over  six  million  dollars' 
worth  of  gold  is  annually  taken  from  the  Cibao 
district. 

A  short  distance  from  Santiago,  and  connected 
by  railway,  is  the  town  of  Moca,  a  city  of  thirty 
thousand  inhabitants  and  a  "white  town,"  with 
the  majority  of  its  inhabitants  of  pure  Castilian 
descent,  a  spot  famous  for  its  coffee  but  other- 
wise of  no  great  interest. 

Beyond  Puerto  Plata  an  almost  unbroken  ex- 
panse of  forest-covered  mountains  stretches  to  the 
tip  of  Cape  Cabras,  and,  rounding  this,  the  ship 
enters  magnificent  Samana  Bay,  perhaps  the  love- 
liest body  of  water  in  all  the  world. 

Blue  as  the  azure  sky  above,  the  placid  lake-like 
bay  stretches  into  the  heart  of  the  land  till  lost  in 
the  haze  of  distance.  Thirty  miles  in  length  and 
ten  miles  in  width  is  this  great  landlocked  estuary, 
dotted  with  wooded  islets,  bordered  on  the  north 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   185 

by  lofty  mountains  rich  with  forests,  and  on  the 
south  by  low  rolling  land  sweeping  in  vast  plains 
and  conical  hills  to  the  southern  coast  of  the  island. 
Sheltered  from  the  winds,  protected  from  the 
waves,  and  deep  enough  for  the  largest  ships, 
Samana  Bay  affords  a  secure  harbor  wherein  all 
the  navies  of  the  world  might  lie  in  safety,  an 
unequaled  spot  for  a  rendezvous  and  coaling  sta- 
tion, a  place  of  great  strategic  value  and  which 
our  Government  once  considered  purchasing. 

Soon  after  entering  the  bay,  a  tiny  cove  on  the 
northern  shore  is  passed,  a  wild,  deserted,  jungle- 
hidden  spot,  but  famous  in  the  annals  of  history, 
for  here  a  landing  party,  sent  by  Columbus,  was 
attacked  by  Indians  and  the  first  battle  between 
armed  Europeans  and  naked  savages  occurred. 
Gulfo  de  las  Flechas  (Bay  of  the  Arrows)  it  is 
called,  in  memory  of  this  trifling  skirmish  which 
sealed  the  doom  of  the  aborigines  of  the  Antilles. 

Opposite  this  little  bay,  and  several  miles  from 
shore,  an  emerald  islet  breaks  the  surface  of  the 
bay:  a  daintily  pretty  spot,  some  three  miles  long 
and  a  mile  wide,  rising  from  snowy  coral  beaches 
to  wooded  hills.  Cayo  Levantado  is  its  name,  and  it 
is  a  wonderfully  interesting  place  for  those  in  whose 
veins  runs  a  love  for  romance  and  tales  of  buc- 
caneers and  buried  treasure,  for  here  the  pirates 
built  a  stronghold, — all  but  impregnable, — from 
which  they  defied  Spain,  France,  and  Britain  alike. 


186  THE  WEST  INDIES 

To-day,  amid  the  overwhelming  vegetation,  one 
may  still  see  the  ruined  houses,  water  tanks,  and 
forts,  all  hewn  from  the  solid  living  rock,  but  now 
deserted,  save  by  the  clumsy  pelicans  which  swarm 
by  thousands  on  the  islet  and  rear  their  young  in 
peace  upon  the  silent  shores  that  once  echoed  to 
the  shouts  of  roistering  freebooters,  the  maudlin 
songs  of  drunken  pirates,  and  the  noise  of  de- 
bauchery and  unbridled  license. 

From  the  loopholes,  chiseled  by  prisoners  under 
the  sting  of  the  lash,  trail  flowering  vines;  great 
forest  trees  have  sprung  from  the  crevices  and  in 
their  growth  have  riven  asunder  the  walls  that 
laughed  at  shot  and  shell;  the  roofless  houses, 
where  the  pirates  once  made  merry  and  gamed 
away  their  blood-stained  loot,  are  filled  with  rot- 
ting leaves  and  fallen  limbs,  and  the  cisterns,  from 
which  the  bold  sea-rovers  filled  their  water  casks, 
are  choked  with  mold  and  great  gnarled  roots. 

Who  can  say  what  treasures  may  not  lie  hidden 
in  the  islet's  soil?  Many  a  chest  of  golden  dou- 
bloons and  silver  "pieces  of  eight"  has  been  landed 
on  that  snowy  strip  of  sand,  many  a  bale  of  shim- 
mering silk  and  cloth  of  gold  has  been  torn  open 
and  slashed  in  pieces  with  blood-stained  cut- 
lasses, to  deck  ruffianly  crews.  There,  in  the 
shade  of  the  sea-grape  trees,  many  a  black-hearted 
fiend  has  quaffed  priceless  wines  in  jeweled  chal- 
ices from  desecrated  altars;  up  through  the 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   187 

branches  of  the  very  trees,  that  still  rear  their  green 
heights  above  the  isle,  have  rung  the  screams  of 
ravished  women  and  tortured  men,  and  lazily 
swinging  to  their  moorings  off  the  beach  have 
floated  fleets  of  high-pooped  ships  with  sides  bris- 
tling with  guns,  while  from  their  lofty  slender 
spars  the  Jolly  Roger  fluttered  in  the  breeze 

Ten  miles  from  the  entrance  to  the  bay  lies 
Santa  Barbara  de  Samana,  a  charmingly  situated 
town  on  the  shores  of  a  landlocked  harbor  and  at 
the  base  of  lofty  hills  densely  clothed  with  fruit 
orchards,  cocoa  groves,  and  gardens. 

Samana  has  been  Spanish,  French,  Haitien, 
American,  and  Dominican  in  turn,  and  at  one 
period  of  its  existence  was  even  an  independent 
republic  of  diminutive  proportions,  and  the  inhabi- 
tants speak  patois  French  and  English  as  well  as 
Spanish.  Indeed  a  large  proportion  can  claim 
English  as  their  mother  tongue,  for  they  are  de- 
scendants of  colored  folk  from  the  United  States, 
who  were  brought  out  as  laborers  when  Samana 
was  leased  to  an  American  company  many  years 
ago. 

The  San  Juan  Valley,  a  few  miles  inland  from 
the  town,  is  settled  principally  by  these  people  who 
are  by  far  the  most  diligent  workers  and  the  best 
agriculturists  on  the  island.  They  are  a  prosper- 
ous, contented  lot  and  still  retain  many  of  the 
customs  and  manners  of  their  forefathers,  and  state 


188  THE  WEST  INDIES 

proudly  that  they  are  of  "Yankee  abstraction," 
while  still  funnier  is  their  habit  of  referring  to 
their  riding  bulls  as  "bicycles." 

Everywhere  about  the  shores  of  Samana  are 
immense  cocoanut  groves  and  millions  of  the  nuts 
are  shipped,  but  the  most  important  crop  is  cocoa, 
while  large  quantities  of  fruits  and  vegetables  are 
grown  for  the  local  markets  and  the  visiting  steam- 
ships, the  Samana  navel  oranges  and  the  huge 
pineapples,  often  weighing  twenty  to  twenty- 
five  pounds,  being  famous  throughout  the 
republic. 

There  are  no  large  or  impressive  buildings  in  the 
town,  the  streets  are  mainly  narrow,  rough,  and 
merely  byways,  and  the  majority  of  the  houses  are 
wooden  shacks,  but  Samana  can  boast  of  several 
important  industries  and  possesses  match  and 
soap  factories,  a  chocolate  factory,  etc. 

On  the  whole,  however,  it  is  of  little  interest,  for 
it  is  of  comparatively  recent  origin,  as  is  Sanchez, 
the  next  port  of  call,  sixteen  miles  from  Samana, 
at  the  head  of  the  bay. 

Sanchez  is  a  curious,  ragged  little  town  whcse 
only  excuse  for  existing  is  that  it  is  the  tide-water 
terminus  of  the  Samana-La  Vega  Railway.  It 
is  built  upon  two  hills, — if  the  term  "built"  can 
be  applied  to  a  place  that  appears  to  have  been 
dropped,  like  a  handful  of  seeds,  from  above 
and  whose  houses  look  as  if  they  had  found  root 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   189 

and  had  sprouted  wherever  they  chanced  to  land 
among  the  weeds  and  neglected  _vegetation. 

A  few  houses — the  residences  of  wealthy  mer- 
chants and  railway  officials — are  neat,  well 
painted,  and  surrounded  with  attractive  grounds; 
there  is  a  large  bare  church  and  a  club-house  on  the 
hilltop,  and  near  the  docks  are  numerous  enormous 
warehouses,  large  stores,  and  extensive  machine 
shops,  as  well  as  an  immense  customs-house  and  a 
fine  steel  wharf.  But  outside  of  these,  Sanchez 
is  a  misdemeanor  and  its  streets  are  a  felony,  for 
they  are  as  crooked,  steep,  rough,  and  stony  as  the 
bed  of  a  mountain  torrent,  and  in  rainy  weather 
rivers  of  mud,  and  it  rains  most  of  the  time  in 
Sanchez.  Before  the  advent  of  the  railway, 
Sanchez  was  called  Las  Cafiitas,  which  means 
"The  Little  Creeks,"  and  any  one  who  has  essayed 
to  traverse  the  streets  after  a  rain  will  agree  that 
the  town  was  most  appropriately  named.  Most  of 
the  houses  are  ramshackle,  down-at-the-heels, 
out-at-elbows  hovels,  unpainted,  weather-beaten, 
and  propped  up  on  stilt-like  posts  to  keep  them 
from  sinking  out  of  sight  in  the  muck,  for  drainage 
and  sanitation  are  unheard-of  luxuries  and  many 
of  the  "grounds"  are  filthy  morasses  in  which  only 
the  pigs  feel  at  home.  In  short,  Sanchez  exactly 
fulfills  the  popular  idea  of  a  town  in  Santo  Domingo 
and  which,  by  every  right,  belongs  across  the  bor- 
der in  Haiti. 


190  THE  WEST  INDIES 

But  despite  their  slipshod,  miserable  apology 
of  a  town  the  people  of  Sanchez  are  a  hospitable, 
pleasant,  well-to-do  lot.  Many  of  the  merchants 
are  very  wealthy,  many  of  their  children  have 
been  educated  in  Europe  or  the  United  States,  and 
their  houses  are  luxuriously  provided  with  the 
most  expensive  cabinet  work,  the  costliest  pianos, 
and  the  most  lavish  furnishings  that  money  can 
buy,  while  the.  women  of  the  Sanchez  "four  hun- 
dred" wear  the  latest  Parisian  gowns,  the  most 
ultra  modes  in  millinery,  and  jewels  worth  fortunes. 
Strange  and  incongruous  as  such  things  appear  to 
the  northerner,  it  is  typical  of  Latin  America,  for 
to  the  man  of  Spanish  blood  his  home  is  literally 
his  castle — a  community,  a  miniature  kingdom  in 
itself.  To  its  fastnesses  he  and  his  family  retire  as  to 
a  stronghold,  and  what  takes  place  outside  his  walls, 
what  the  character  of  the  surroundings,  or  who  his 
neighbors,  are  matters  which  do  not  concern  him 
in  the  least  and  which  trouble  him  not  at  all. 

The  railway  from  Sanchez  to  La  Vega,  albeit 
but  sixty  miles  in  length,  cost  an  enormous  sum, 
and  is  poorly  built  and  miserably  equipped  and 
operated,  but  it  carries  an  immense  amount  of 
freight  and  many  passengers  and  is  of  great  im- 
portance, as  it  affords  the  only  outlet  for  avast 
area  which  otherwise  would  be  almost  completely 
cut  off  from  the  outside  world. 

As  the  trains  rarely  exceed  a  speed  of  eight  miles 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   191 

an  hour — with  the  exception  of  the  "special 
express"  trains  which  at  times  travel  at  the  terrific 
rate  of  fifteen  miles — and  as  stops  of  an  indefinite 
time  are  made  at  every  little  village,  estate,  or 
collection  of  huts,  the  railway  affords  the  visitor 
a  splendid  opportunity  to  view  the  country  through 
which  it  passes. 

And  it  is  most  truly  an  interesting  and  worth- 
while journey,  its  only  drawback  being  that  one 
is  compelled  to  spend  a  night  in  La  Vega,  which — 
unless  one  is  inured  to  hardships  and  the  rough 
and  seamy  side  of  life  or  is  prepared  to  forego  all 
comforts,  luxuries,  and  many  necessities — is  a  fear- 
some thing  to  do,  for  La  Vega's  accommodations 
for  the  stranger  within  its  gates  are  primitive  in 
the  extreme. 

Close  to  Sanchez,  the  Bay  of  Samana  culminates 
in  a  vast  mangrove  swamp,  stretching  across  to  the 
mouth  of  the  Colorado  River  and  covering  an  area 
of  over  one  hundred  square  miles,  and  within  the 
impassable,  impenetrable  security  of  this  swamp 
thousands  of  herons,  egrets,  ibises,  flamingos,  and 
other  wild  fowl  find  a  safe  refuge.  For  the  first 
nine  or  ten  miles  after  leaving  Sanchez  the  railway 
crosses  this  swamp  and  then  crawls  forth  onto 
rolling,  grassy  savanna  land  varied  by  groves  of 
cocoa,  islands  of  forest,  and  clumps  of  brush,  and 
cut  by  streams  and  rivers  until  it  reminds  one  of  a 
jig-saw  puzzle. 


192  THE  WEST  INDIES 

As  the  train  proceeds,  the  patches  of  woods 
become  more  scattered,  great  solitary  trees  tower 
above  the  grassy  prairies,  and,  far  ahead,  the  inte- 
rior mountain  ranges  may  be  seen  upon  the  horizon. 

This  is  the  grazing  country,  and  everywhere  are 
herds  of  cattle  and  droves  of  horses,  upon  whose 
backs  perch  sleek,  dignified-looking  blue  and  white 
herons  busily  gobbling  the  ticks  and  flies  attracted 
to  their  mounts. 

Wider  and  wider  become  the  prairies,  fewer  are 
the  hills  and  hollows  until,  on  every  hand,  a  vast 
smooth  sea  of  green  stretches  as  far  as  eye  can 
see,  lush  as  a  New  England  meadow,  dotted  with 
countless  royal  palms,  and  with  here  and  there  the 
glint  of  flowing  water  shaded  by  gigantic,  scarlet- 
flowered  trees.  It  is  the  Vega  Real — the  Royal 
Plain — an  enormous  interior  valley  over  one  hun- 
dred miles  in  length  and  fifty  miles  in  width  and 
fertile  beyond  belief.  One  might  search  the  world 
and  not  find  a  more  beautiful  and  promising  spot 
for  the  agriculturist  or  colonist,  or  a  lovelier  place 
in  which  to  dwell.  Marvelously  rich,  plentifully 
watered,  with  a  temperate  climate,  in  which  pota- 
toes, wheat,  corn,  and  many  other  northern  vege- 
tables and  fruits  grow  to  perfection,  covered  with 
luxuriant  grass  and  capable  of  supporting  an  im- 
mense population,  yet  this  huge  upland  plain  is 
deserted  and  neglected, — a  veritable  waste.  Here 
and  there  a  tiny  hut  stands  in  a  little  patch  of  culti- 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   193 

vated  land;  a  few  scattered  knots  of  cattle  and 
horses  may  be  seen  grazing  knee-deep  in  the  herb- 
age, and  a  lonely  estancia  or  two  stand  out  against 
the  green,  but  otherwise  the  land  is  as  void  of  life 
and  industry  as  a  desert. 

At  frequent  intervals,  as  the  train  rattles  lazily 
inland  from  the  coast,  it  draws  up  at  wayside 
stations, — mostly  straggling,  sun-baked  clusters  of 
one-story  houses,  with  a  corrugated  iron,  box- 
like  ticket  and  telegraph  office,  a  big  scale  for 
weighing  cocoa,  and  dark  stores,  whose  chief  stock 
in  trade  is  a  marvelous  assortment  of  liquors, 
and  black,  ebony-like  sticks  of  the  native  perique 
tobacco. 

But  every  station — no  matter  how  small,  how 
isolated  or  God-forsaken — swarms  with  country 
folk,  every  man  or  boy  carrying  one  or  more  fight- 
ing cocks  under  his  arms.  Cockfighting  is  the 
national  pastime,  and,  as  at  a  moment's  notice  a 
main  may  be  in  order,  each  male  Dominican  who 
can  buy,  borrow,  or  steal  a  rooster,  goes  about  in 
readiness  to  pit  his  feathered  champion  against 
all  comers.  As  differences  of  opinion  are  liable  to 
arise  and  one  never  knows  when  some  new  aspir- 
ant for  political  fame  or  martial  glory  may  sound 
the  call  to  arms,  the  Dominicans  deem  it  but 
wisdom  to  be  ever  ready  for  any~emergency  which 
may  arise. 

Surely,  if  preparedness  spelled  peace  and  pros- 


194  THE  WEST  INDIES . 

perity,  Santo  Domingo  would  be  the  most  peaceful 
and  prosperous  of  lands,  for  the  natives  are  ardent 
believers  in  the  popular  slogan  and  carry  their 
convictions  to  extremes.  Many  a  man  is  seen  with 
two  machetes, — one  the  ordinary  type,  the  other 
a  long,  keen-edged,  scimitar-like  weapon  slung  in 
sheath  from  the  shoulder, — a  heavy  revolver,  a 
wicked,  dagger-like  knife,  and,  for  good  measure,  a 
rifle  or  shotgun.  And,  in  a  way,  the  truth  of  the 
preparedness  creed  is  demonstrated,  for,  despite 
the  fact  that  most  Dominicans  are  walking  arsen- 
als, yet  fights  and  shooting  and  stabbing  affrays 
are  far  from  common.  Whether  this  is  due  to  the 
fact  that  it  is  no  light  matter  to  go  about  with  a 
chip  on  one's  shoulder  when  everyone  is  equally 
prepared  for  a  fracas,  whether  it  is  because  arms 
and  ammunition  are  so  costly  that  the  people  can- 
not afford  to  waste  them  without  good  reason,  or 
whether  the  Dominicans  are  naturally  of  a  peace- 
loving  disposition,  I  cannot  say. 

Whatever  the  reason,  most  of  the  blood-letting 
is  confined  to  the  sporadic  revolutions,  and  even 
these  seem  more  in  the  nature  of  games,  for  reliev- 
ing the  tedium  of  uneventful  lives,  than  serious 
conflicts.  There  appears  to  be  little  or  no  real 
animosity  between  the  opposing  factors,  and  I  have 
seen  two  men — who  were  "sniping"  at  one 
another  from  the  protection  of  trees  on  either  side 
of  a  highway — lay  aside  their  arms,  wave  white 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   195 

rags  of  truce  and,  advancing  to  a  "neutral  zone" 
in  the  center  of  the  road,  smoke  a  cigarette  of  peace, 
chat  for  a  few  moments,  and  then  resume  their 
pot-shooting  as  nonchalantly  as  possible.  Even- 
tually, their  ammunition  having  been  exhausted 
without  scoring  bull's-eyes  on  either  side,  the  two 
warriors  slouched  off  in  the  direction  of  the  nearest 
rum  shop,  apparently  on  the  best  of  terms.  Dur- 
ing the  height  of  battle  it  is  not  unusual  for  the 
opposing  "armies"  to  lay  aside  all  differences  and 
pose  for  a  photographer  and  after  the  picture  is 
taken  resume  hostilities. 

As  a  rule,  the  loss  of  life  during  an  insurrection 
is  very  small,  as  compared  to  the  number  of  com- 
batants and  the  amount  of  powder  burned,  for 
although  the  Dominicans  fight  viciously  and  with 
conspicuous  bravery  at  times,  yet  they  are  exe- 
crable shots  and  miserably  drilled  and  equipped. 
But  for  all  their  comic-opera  attributes  the  revolu- 
tions have  been  the  curse  of  the  island  and  have 
kept  it  where  it  is  to-day.  Now  that  our  own 
government  supervises  the  elections,  supports  the 
legally  appointed  authorities,  suppresses  the  re- 
volts, and  disarms  the  natives  of  the  republic,  it 
is  to  be  hoped  that  insurrections  are  a  thing  of  the 
past  and  that  the  Dominicans  will  devote  more  of 
their  time  to  the  arts  of  peace  and  give  less  atten- 
tion to  war. 

When  the  inhabitants  of  the  island  discard  their 


196  THE  WEST  INDIES 

guns  and  take  up  the  hoe,  when  they  learn  to 
handle  the  machete  as  an  agricultural  implement 
with  the  same  dexterity  as  they  now  wield  it  as  a 
sword,  then,  and  not  till  then,  will  dawn  an  era 
of  prosperity  and  progress  which  will  lift  Santo 
Domingo  to  the  place  it  merits. 

At  the  edge  of  the  Vega  Real,  where  the  great 
plain  joins  the  foothills,  is  La  Vega.  Behind  it 
rise  ranges  dark  with  vast  forests  of  long-leafed 
pine  and  at  its  feet  flows  the  broad  and  winding 
Camu  River.  It  is  a  lovely  situation,  with  a  cool 
and  healthy  climate,  for  the  town  is  three  hundred 
feet  above  the  sea,  but  La  Vega,  for  all  its  natural 
advantages,  is  neither  pleasant  nor  healthy. 
It  is  miserably  neglected,  its  wide  straight  streets 
are  rough,  full  of  holes  and  litter;  many  of  its 
houses  are  tumbling  about  their  occupants'  ears, 
and  cleanliness  and  sanitation  are  conspicuous  by 
their  absence.  The  surroundings  of  many  of  the 
buildings  in  the  poorer  sections  of  the  city  are 
unspeakably  filthy,  and  as  the  river  serves  for  a 
laundry,  a  sewer  for  the  slaughter  house,  a  dump- 
ing place  for  slops  and  garbage,  and  a  source  of 
drinking  water  for  the  people,  it  is  not  at  all  sur- 
prising that  La  Vega  suffers  from  fearful  epidemics 
of  typhoid. 

The  pretty  little  plaza,  with  its  fine  public 
buildings  and  immense  cathedral  out  of  all  pro- 
portion to  the  number  of  inhabitants  (about  5000), 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   197 

is  the  redeeming  feature  of  the  place,  but  there 
are  also  many  large  and  handsome  residences,  a 
very  picturesque  city  gate,  some  creditable  monu- 
ments and  statues,  a  boys'  college,  and  several 
sawmills.  On  the  whole,  however,  there  is  little 
enough  to  attract  the  visitor  to  La  Vega,  although 
near  at  hand  are  some  most  interesting  and  his- 
toric spots. 

The  most  important  of  these  is  the  original 
settlement  of  La  Vega,  known  as  La  Vega  la  Vieja, 
and  which  was  founded  by  Columbus  in  1495. 
It  soon  became  an  important  and  thriving  town, 
but  was  destroyed  by  an  earthquake  in  1564  and 
was  deserted  for  the  present  town  site.  To-day, 
crumbling  ruins  mark  the  ancient  town,  and  here 
the  visitor  may  dig  up  old  coins,  bits  of  armor  and 
Toledo  blades,  in  fact,  "mining"  these  old  Spanish 
swords  is  quite  an  industry  among  the  "paisanos" 
or  country  folk,  and  the  ancient  weapons,  which 
helped  carve  the  glory  of  Old  Spain,  are  often 
seen  doing  duty  as  machetes  in  the  hands  of  the 
Dominicans. 

About  two  miles  from  the  deserted  old  settle- 
ment, and  about  six  miles  from  the  present  town 
of  La  Vega,  stands  the  Santo  Cerro  or  Holy  Hill, 
a  spot  greatly  reverenced  by  the  natives  on  account 
of  a  miracle  which  is  reputed  to  have  taken  place 
in  1494. 

It  was  on  the  summit  of  the  hill,  which  rises 


198  THE  WEST  INDIES 

six  hundred  feet  above  the  plain,  that  Columbus 
sat  at  ease  beneath  a  spreading  sapodilla  tree  and 
watched  his  mail-clad  Spaniards  butcher  the  help- 
less Indians  while,  to  vary  the  spectacle,  huge 
bloodhounds  were  set  upon  the  natives  and  with 
blood-dripping  teeth  tore  naked  savages  to  pieces. 
With  their  customary  habit,  of  giving  all  credit  for 
their  inhuman  victories  to  an  over-patient  God, 
Columbus  and  his  companions  erected  a  cross  upon 
the  hill  to  commemorate  the  slaughter  wrought, 
and  also  as  a  reminder  to  the  aborigines  of  the 
power  of  the  Christian  faith. 

No  sooner  were  the  Spaniards  safely  out  of  sight 
and  peace  once  more  settled  down  upon  the  blood- 
drenched  plain  than  the  remnant  of  the  Indians 
hurried  towards  the  cross  to  destroy  and  revile  it. 
And  little  can  they  be  blamed,  for  to  them  the 
cross  was  but  the  sign  of  slavery,  torture,  fire,  and 
sword,  and  good  grounds  had  they  to  hate  the  em- 
blem of  Christianity. 

But,  as  the  persecuted  natives  came  near  the 
summit  of  the  hill,  a  female  figure  descended  from 
the  skies  and  stood  upon  the  arms  of  the  great 
cross.  Thinking,  no  doubt,  that  the  apparition 
was  but  another  of  their  white  murderers,  the 
Indians  shot  arrows  and  hurled  stones.  To  their 
amazement,  the  calm  figure  remained  undisturbed 
by  the  missiles  passing  through  her  body,  and  then, 
as  it  dawned  upon  them  that  'twas  no  flesh  and 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   199 

blood  which  stood  before  them,  but  a  celestial 
visitor,  the  savages  fell  upon  the  earth  in  adoration. 
To-day  a  fragment  of  the  cross  lies  enshrined  in  the 
great  cathedral  of  the  capital,  while  upon  the  spot 
where  it  once  stood  a  church  has  been  erected,  to 
which  the  faithful  make  pilgrimages  from  many 
leagues  around,  often  climbing  from  base  to  summit 
of  the  hill  on  hands  and  knees. 

Even  without  the  romantic,  historic  incident  of 
the  cross,  a  visit  to  the  famous  spot  is  well  repaid 
by  the  view  from  the  summit  of  the  hill. 

From  here  one  looks  forth  upon  the  richest  por- 
tion of  the  great  Royal  Plain,  a  vast  carpet  of 
green,  cut  by  the  silvery  threads  of  winding  rivers, 
dotted  with  tiny  huts  and  gardens  of  plantains 
and  bananas,  broken  by  groves  of  cocoa  and  coffee, 
fields  of  maize  and  tobacco,  orchards  of  fruit 
trees  and  countless  royal  palms,  while  everywhere 
the  scarlet,  flamboyant  trees  blaze,  like  flaming 
pyres,  against  the  sea  of  verdure,  which  stretches, 
north,  southeast,  and  west,  illimitable,  magnificent, 
beautiful  as  a  dream,  to  the  blue  and  shimmering 
mountain  ranges. 

Southward  from  Samana  Bay,  around  Engano 
Point, — with  Mona  rising  bare  and  forbidding 
against  the  filmy,  cloud-like  wraiths  of  Porto 
Rico's  mountains, — the  ship  steams  from  San- 
chez to  Macoris. 

Macoris — or    more    properly,    San    Pedro  de 


200  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Macoris,  to  avoid  confusion  with  San  Francisco 
de  Macoris,  an  interior  town  on  the  La  Vega  rail- 
way— is  an  important  port  in  the  midst  of  the  rich 
sugar  district  of  the  island. 

The  town  is  several  miles  from  the  sea  on  the 
Higuano  River,  and  here  the  ships  moor  to  com- 
modious, well-built  docks  over  which  the  sugar 
from  the  estates  is  hauled  to  the  vessels'  sides 
on  narrow-gauge  steam  railways.  Macoris  is 
a  flourishing  city  built  on  land  as  level  as  a 
floor,  and,  in  every  direction,  there  is  little  to  be 
seen  save  the  flat  llanuras  covered  with  cane  and 
above  which  tower  the  tall  chimneys  of  the  big 
sugar  mills.  The  town  is  well  kept,  progressive, 
and  has  a  neat,  self-respecting  appearance,  in 
pleasant  contrast  to  Sanchez  and  La  Vega,  but  it 
is  very  hot,  dry,  and  dusty. 

The  streets  are  wide  and  smooth,  the  houses  are, 
as  a  rule,  well  built,  and  the  little  puffing  locomo- 
tives hauling  long  trains  of  laden  cars,  the  tugs 
towing  the  big  lighters  up  and  down  the  river,  and 
the  steam  dredges  and  the  extensive  docks  lined 
with  huge  warehouses,  give  the  place  a  very  busy, 
bustling  appearance. 

The  observant  visitor  to  Santo  Domingo  cannot 
fail  to  be  attracted  by  the  great  numbers  of  royal 
palms  that  are  seen  everywhere.  Highly  orna- 
mental, with  their  great  dark-green  crowns  sup- 
ported on  ivory-white  trunks,  these  palms  give 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   201 

an  intensely  tropical  touch  to  the  landscape  and 
are,  perhaps,  the  most  stately  of  trees.  But  they 
are  even  more  useful  than  ornamental  and  to  the 
natives  serve  almost  as  many  purposes  as  the 
reindeer  to  the  Laplander.  The  tender  heart  of 
the  buds  is  delicious,  either  cooked  or  eaten  raw 
like  salad,  and  is  known  as  "palm  cabbage" 
throughout  the  West  Indies.  The  dried  sheets, 
stripped  from  the  outer  portion  of  the  bud,  are 
known  as  "  Yagua,"  which  is  used  in  making  bales 
for  tobacco  and  other  products  and  also  as  shingles 
and  clapboards  for  houses.  The  leaves  also  make 
excellent  thatch,  as  well  as  bedding  and  window 
shutters,  and  the  trunks  are  split  into  boards.  It 
is  not  uncommon  to  see  many  houses,  even  entire 
villages,  which  are  built  wholly  from  the  royal 
palms  without  a  single  nail  being  used  in  their 
construction. 

Westward  from  Macoris  about  forty  miles  is  the 
capital, — historic,  ancient  Santo  Domingo  City, — 
the  oldest  existing  European  city  in  America.  At 
the  mouth  of  the  Ozama  River,  upon  a  high  rocky 
bluff,  stands  the  Homenaje,  a  great  stone  fortress, 
with  its  Moorish  tower  looming  high  above  all  else, 
and  its  dull-red  walls  seeming  to  form  a  portion  of 
the  cliff  on  which  they  rest  and  whose  jagged  angles 
and  every  fissure  they  follow.  Like  a  grim-visaged, 
red-faced,  battle-scarred  old  campaigner  it  stands 
above  the  narrow  river  mouth  and,  to  one  looking 


202  THE  WEST  INDIES 

upon  it  for  the  first  time,  it  seems  unreal,  a  vision  of 
the  past,  as  much  out  of  place  in  our  modern  world 
as  a  helmeted  halberdier  amid  a  company  of  khaki- 
clad  soldiery  armed  with  magazine  rifles.  But  it 
is  thoroughly  in  keeping  with  the  town  over 
which  it  has  stood  guard  for  four  long  centuries 
and  more. 

Within  its  windowless  tower  tradition  has  it 
that  Columbus  was  imprisoned,  but  history  proves 
otherwise,  for  the  great  navigator  languished  in 
chains  in  Santo  Domingo  in  1500,  nine  years  before 
the  Homenaje  was  built,  and  he  was  confined  in  a 
smaller  fortress  on  the  opposite  bank  of  the  river. 
To-day,  only  ruins  mark  the  spot  of  the  original 
settlement  and  the  prison  of  Columbus,  which, 
erected  in  1496  by  Bartholomew  Columbus,  was 
abandoned  after  being  partially  destroyed  by  a 
hurricane  in  1502. 

Slowly  the  ship  steams  between  the  two  ancient 
historic  piles — the  shores  so  close  one  could  toss 
a  stone  onto  dry  land  on  either  side — and  enters 
the  broader  river  beyond,  where,  stretching  for  a 
mile  or  more  along  the  bank,  is  the  most  famous 
city  of  old  new  Spain. 

And  as  one  gazes  shoreward  as  the  ship  moors 
to  the  docks  beside  the  new  and  modern  customs- 
house,  centuries  seem  to  have  rolled  back  to  reveal 
a  scene  out  of  the  dim,  forgotten  past. 

Rounded  domes  of  ancient  type,  quaint  masonry 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC  203 

cupolas,  slender  towers,  and  tiled  roofs  rise  against 
the  sky  above  the  city  wall.  Pink,  yellow,  and  blue 
houses  crowd  every  space,  some  with  overhanging 
balconies,  terraced  sides,  and  loopholed  battle- 
ments about  their  roofs,  and  some  with  water- 
gates,  and  all  mellowed,  softened,  ripened  with 
four  hundred  years  of  blazing  tropic  sun  and 
drenching  tropic  rains. 

To  some  the  town  gives  the  impression  of  decay, 
dilapidation,  even  squalor,  and  it  has  been  de- 
scribed as  a  "city  out  at  elbows  and  whose  chief 
thoroughfare  is  a  way  of  ruts,  pits,  and  trenches 
inlaid  with  rubbish  and  proclaiming  the  last  scenes 
of  the  'Rake's  Progress.'" 

But  this  is  an  exaggeration,  the  pessimistic  view 
of  one  who  must  have  seen  the  city  after  a  siege 
of  seasickness  or  during  a  severe  attack  of  indiges- 
tion. He  who  looks  for  the  picturesque  and  an- 
cient, the  romance  of  the  past  and  scenes  linked 
with  the  conquest  of  the  New  World,  will  find  this 
"proud  and  goodly-builded  city"  so  full  of  charm, 
of  interest,  and  of  wonders  that  its  failures,  its 
shortcomings,  and  its  faults  will  be  forgotten,  over- 
looked, unnoticed. 

There  is  no  denying  that  the  city  is  far  from 
clean,  that  many  a  one-time  water  gate  and  loop- 
holed  terrace  are  now  but  dumps  for  garbage; 
that  many  a  mosaic-paved,  colonnaded  patio  serves 
as  a  lumber  yard  or  stable;  that  massive  doors, 


204  THE  WEST  INDIES 

thick  studded  with  great  bronze  nails  and  ornate 
hinges,  are  placarded  with  handbills;  that  tiny 
shacks  and  miserable  hovels  lean  drunkenly  against 
walls  from  whose  summit  the  soldiers  of  Castile 
strove  to  beat  back  the  hordes  of  Drake  and  Mor- 
gan, and  that  within  roofless  cloisters  are  herded 
horses,  goats,  and  cattle.  But  we  should  not  judge 
the  Dominicans  too  harshly  for  their  neglect  and 
their  disregard  of  priceless  ruins  of  past  magnifi- 
cence and  grandeur.  Familiarity  breeds  contempt ; 
to  those  who  have  been  born  and  reared  for  genera- 
tions amid  such  scenes  they  are  of  little  interest  and 
no  value,  and  in  our  own  colony  of  Porto  Rico 
wonderful  ruins  have  been  sacrificed  with  utter 
disregard  of  their  historic  value.  City  walls  'have 
been  torn  down  to  give  way  to  trolley  tracks, 
vaulted  underground  passages  have  been  filled  in 
to  provide  public  dumping  grounds,  ancient  lan- 
tern-like sentry  boxes  have  been  torn  ruthlessly 
from  their  bastions  and  thrown  into  rubbish  heaps, 
while  the  battle-scarred,  wonderful  San  Juan  gate 
is  an  eyesore  with  patent-medicine  advertisement 
and  announcements  of  motion-picture  shows. 

And  now  to  return  to  Santo  Domingo.  Directly 
above  the  docks  stands  an  immense  black  ruin, 
a  structure  with  the  form  of  a  palace  and  the  solid- 
ity of  a  fortress,  and  in  its  time  it  served  the  dual 
purpose  of  both.  This  is  the  House  of  Columbus, 
the  one  time  residence  of  the  Admiral's  son,  Diego, 


THE    GATE    IN    CITY    WALL.    SAN    DOMINGO 


HOMENAJE    TOWER,    SAN    DOMINGO 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC  205 

who,  as  viceroy  of  the  island,  builded  his  house  on 
such  massive  lines  and  fortified  it  so  strongly  with 
parapets,  culverins,  and  cannon  that  the  King  of 
Spain  became  alarmed  and  commanded  the 
viceroy  to  set  sail  for  Spain  forthwith  to  explain 
his  actions. 

To  the  right,  and  near  the  water's  edge,  a  seamed, 
gnarled,  half-dead  old  ceiba  tree  struggles  to  keep 
green  its  few  remaining  branches.  It  is  a  disrepu- 
table old  tree  of  gigantic  girth,  but  revered  by 
the  people,  for  to  it,  so  tradition  says,  were  moored 
the  caravels  of  Christopher  Columbus.  Whether 
or  not  the  hawsers  of  the  Admiral's  ships  were  ever 
made  fast  to  this  identical  tree  may  never  be 
definitely  established,  but  the  ceiba  is  surely  old 
enough  to  have  served  such  a  purpose,  and  there 
is  no  valid  reason  to  doubt  the  tale. 

Near  it  is  an  enormous  stone  cistern,  the  Colum- 
bus Well,  which  has  served  as  a  water  tank  for 
four  hundred  years  at  least,  and  which,  if  not 
actually  associated  with  the  discoverer  of  America, 
was  there  when  he  passed  to  and  from  the  docks, 
and  no  doubt  his  men  filled  their  casks  from  it  in 
preparation  for  the  long  voyage  back  to  Spain  from 
this  wonderful  land  of  Hispaniola. 

Up  from  the  docks  a  steeply  sloping  street  leads 
to  the  huge  arched  gateway  in  the  city  wall, — the 
same  massive  wall,  twenty  feet  or  more  in  thick- 
ness and  which  completely  encircles  the  city, — 


206  THE  WEST  INDIES 

which  defended  the  town  from  its  foes  for  centuries. 
The  gaping  wounds  upon  its  perpendicular  face, 
the  rents  in  its  coping,  the  cracks  and  shattered 
stones,  now  half-veiled  by  creepers  and  vines, 
may  have  been  made  by  the  shot  and  shell  of 
Drake,  of  Hawkins,  or  of  Morgan,  for  many  a  can- 
nonading, many  an  assault  has  it  withstood,  and 
still  it  stands,  as  defiant,  as  complete,  as  strong, 
as  when  first  erected  near  half  a  thousand  years 
ago. 

And  as  we  approach  the  gateway  and  pass  be- 
neath the  arms  of  Castile  and  Leon,  carven  in  the 
keystone,  we  half  expect  a  mail-clad  sentinel  to 
step  from  the  shadow  of  the  arch  and  bar  our  way 
with  pike  or  halberd.  But  the  only  sentry  is  a 
sleepy  colored  lad,  clad  in  blue  denim,  his  obsolete 
carbine  leaning  against  the  wall  behind  him,  a 
machete  across  his  lap,  and  with  drooping  cigarette 
between  his  lips,  who  is  snoring  in  the  shade  and 
dreaming  blissfully  of  winning  a  prize  in  the  next 
drawing  of  the  lottery. 

Beyond  the  gate  we  pass  between  the  ruined 
walls  of  the  Columbus  Palace  on  the  right  and  the 
huge,  white,  modern  government  buildings, — glar- 
ingly contrasting  with  the  time-softened  Moorish 
citadel  beyond, — and  through  a  well-paved  street 
reach  the  Plaza  Colon. 

Here,  in  the  center  of  a  little  park  filled  with 
flowering  shrubs,  trees,  and  palms,  is  a  splendid 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC  207 

bronze  statue  of  Columbus,  with  outstretched  arm 
ever  pointing  westward ;  but  somewhat  marred  and 
rendered  theatrical  by  the  figure  of  a  nude  Indian 
maiden  in  the  attitude  of  inscribing  a  tablet  lauda- 
tory of  the  discoverer.  As  the  female  figure  is 
supposed  to  represent  Queen  Anacaona,  who  was 
treacherously  hanged  by  Governor  Ovando  and 
whose  helpless  subjects  were  ruthlessly  butchered 
by  thousands,  it  is  difficult  to  imagine  why  she 
should  express  any  sentiments,  other  than  undying 
hatred,  towards  him  who  brought  the  ruthless 
Spaniards  to  her  fair  and  peaceful  land. 

About  two  sides  of  the  plaza  are  busy  stores  and 
balconied  residences,  which  seem  transplanted 
bodily  from  Mediterranean  shores;  on  the  third 
side  stand  the  really  splendid  Congressional  build- 
ings, and  on  the  fourth,  directly  behind  the  statue, 
are  the  massive  walls,  the  tiled  roofs,  and  the 
enormous  dome  of  the  great  cathedral. 

An  entire  square  and  more  it  covers,  rambling, 
more  like  a  fortress  than  a  place  of  worship,  and 
bearing  the  unmistakable  imprint  of  great  age 
in  every  line  and  time-blackened  stone  of  its 
structure. 

Commenced  in  1514  and  completed  in  1540, 
the  cathedral  is  by  no  means  the  oldest  building 
in  Santo  Domingo,  but  it  is  by  far  the  most  in- 
teresting and  the  most  historic,  for  within  its  dim 
interior  repose  the  mortal  remains  of  Columbus. 


208  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Space  forbids  a  detailed  discussion  of  the  wan- 
derings of  the  admiral's  bones,  from  the  time  the 
great  Genoese  passed  away  in  Valladolid,  Spain, 
until  they  found  a  last  resting-place  within  the 
cathedral  in  the  land  he  loved  so  well.  That  the 
supposed  remains  removed  to  Havana  in  1765,  and 
later  taken  to  Spain  when  the  Spaniards  evacuated 
Cuba,  were  those  of  Diego  Columbus  and  not  of  his 
father,  is  a  well  conceded  fact,  and  the  authenticity 
of  the  Santo  Domingo  bones  has  been  satisfactorily 
established  by  the  researches  of  the  Italian  Gov- 
ernment as  well  as  our  own.  Guarded  by  two 
couchant  lions,  surmounted  by  a  magnificent  monu- 
ment of  Italian  marble  and  within  an  ornamental 
urn,  is  the  leaden  casket,  with  its  inscription  in 
quaint  old  Spanish:  "Discoverer  of  America,  First 
Admiral  and  Illustrious  and  Famous  Don  Chris- 
tobal  Colon. ' '  But  without  the  monumental  tomb, 
without  the  ashes  of  him  who  "gave  unto  Castile 
and  Leon  a  New  World, "  the  cathedral  would  be 
vastly  interesting,  for  it  is  a  thing  of  medieval 
days,  a  structure  such  as  will  never  be  built  again, 
a  relic  of  the  days  when  the  Church  was  the 
mightiest  power  in  the  world.  Within  its  confines 
might  be  housed  the  population  of  a  small  city, 
for  it  is  a  building  so  vast  that  beneath  its  groined 
roof  are  more  than  a  dozen  chapels,  in  each  of 
which  Mass  might  be  held  at  one  and  the  same 
time  without  disturbing  the  other  worshipers. 


TOMB    OF    COLUMBUS,    SAN     DOMINGO 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC  209 

A  day  might  well  be  spent  within  the  cathedral, 
for  there  is  much  to  see  and  it  is  a  veritable  treasure 
house  of  old  Spanish  art,  priceless  jeweled  orna- 
ments of  solid  gold,  wonderful  carvings  and  paint- 
ings by  the  old  masters.  The  high  altar  is  faced 
with  sheets  of  beaten  silver  from  the  island's 
mines  and  is  decorated  with  gold.  There  is  a 
famous  "Door  of  Pardon,"  wherein  the  fleeing 
criminal,  who  reaches  the  portal,  may  claim  safety 
and  a  pardon.  In  the  Capilla  Alta  Gracia  rest  the 
bones  of  Oviedo,  the  greatest  historian  of  Spanish 
conquest  in  America.  There  are  paintings  pre- 
sented to  the  cathedral  by  Ferdinand  and  Isabella, 
and  brought  over  seas  by  Columbus,  and  paintings 
by  Velasquez,  as  well  as  a  Virgin  by  Murillo.  In 
the  Chapel  of  San  Francisco  there  is  a  huge  cross 
of  mahogany,  nine  feet  in  height  and  rudely  hewn, 
the  first  cross  erected  on  the  site  of  the  cathedral 
and  bearing  date  of  1519.  Peace  reigns  within  the 
dim  aisles  of  the  cathedral  to-day,  but  time  was 
when  the  tiled  floors  were  crowded  with  grave-faced 
men,  weeping  women,  and  frightened  children, 
when  the  cries  of  infants,  the  wails  of  women,  and 
the  groans  of  wounded  men  drowned  the  prayers 
of  priests  and  the  chant  of  friars;  when  the  narrow 
windows  were  reddened  with  the  glare  of  flames 
as  Drake  and  his  buccaneers  pillaged,  sacked,  and 
burned  the  town.  Experts  at  destruction  that  they 
were,  yet  the  English  invaders  found  old  Santo 


210  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Domingo  a  difficult  nut  to  crack.  They  took  it 
by  a  clever  ruse,  it  is  true,  they  killed,  robbed, 
looted,  and  destroyed  to  their  hearts'  content,  but 
they  made  but  little  impression  on  the  town  as  a 
whole.  Heaven  alone  knows  what  priceless  paint- 
ings, what  marvelous  works  of  art,  what  wonderful 
furnishings  they  destroyed  for  the  mere  wanton 
pleasure  of  destruction.  Their  chronicler,  Thomas 
Gates,  mentions  the  richness  of  the  furniture,  the 
number  of  the  paintings,  and  the  luxuriance  of 
hangings  and  tapestries  that  helped  to  feed  the 
flames,  but  he  also  adds  that  "the  houses  being 
very  magnificently  built  of  stone  gave  us  no  small 
travail  to  ruin  them,"  and  he  owns,  with  deep 
regret,  that,  despite  the  raiders'  most  diligent 
attempts,  less  than  one  third  of  the  town  was 
destroyed.  Convinced  that  to  hold  the  place 
would  be  hopeless,  and  no  doubt  fearing  to  be 
caught,  like  a  rat  in  a  trap,  by  the  arrival  of  the 
Spanish  fleet,  Drake  at  last  agreed  to  accept  a 
ransom  and  leave  the  town  in  peace.  With  twenty- 
five  thousand  ducats  (about  $35,000)  in  his 
pockets  the  venturesome  Englishman  sailed  away 
to  more  promising  fields,  but  he  left  behind  a 
memento  of  his  visit,  a  cannon  ball  in  the  roof  of 
the  cathedral,  which  still  remains  there  to  this  day. 
The  oldest  church  in  Santo  Domingo  is  San 
Nicolas,  built  in  1508  and  founded  by  no  less  a 
personage  than  bloody  old  Governor  Ovando,  who 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC  211 

hanged  the  Indian  Queen  Anacaona  and  put  untold 
thousands  of  the  Indians  to  torture  and  the  sword. 
Unlike  many  of  his  contemporaries,  this  ill-tem- 
pered old  hidalgo  made  no  pretense  of  maltreating 
the  aborigines  for  Christianity's  sake,  but  killed 
for  the  mere  joy  of  killing  and,  not  confining  him- 
self to  the  natives,  browbeat  and  oppressed  every- 
one with  whom  he  had  dealings,  not  excepting 
Columbus  and  his  brother. 

He  must  have  possessed  a  conscience,  however, 
for,  before  he  died,  he  repented  of  his  villainous 
ways  and,  to  prove  his  sincerity  perhaps,  erected 
the  church  with  its  beautiful  groined  roof,  which 
is  about  all  that  remains  intact  to-day. 

Wherever  one  goes  about  the  city  are  ancient 
churches,  some  in  ruins,  some  still  in  use,  and 
all  replete  with  historic  interests  and  associa- 
tions. 

Largest  of  all  is  San  Francisco,  a  dominant  struc- 
ture on  an  eminence  back  of  the  Columbus  House 
and  rising  above  all  else.  Little  more  than  its 
walls  and  pillars  remain  and  yet  the  immense 
stone  arches  are  still  intact  and  span  the  roofless 
interior,  a  splendid  tribute  to  the  long  dead  and 
forgotten  artisans  who  built  it.  Beneath  the 
tangled  weeds  and  grass  is  a  tessellated  pavement, 
and  under  the  great  altar  Bartholomew  Columbus 
was  buried,  while  at  the  entrance,  "In  humility, 
that  all  who  enter  may  place  their  feet  above  my 


212  THE  WEST  INDIES 

head,"  rests  Ojeda,  fellow  voyager  and  bosom 
friend  of  Christopher  Columbus. 

San  Miguel,  dating  from  1520,  San  Anton,  La 
Merced,  Regina,  and  Santa  Clara  are  all  worthy 
of  a  visit,  while,  most  beautiful  of  all,  is  Santa 
Barbara,  ancient,  quaint,  crudely  primitive,  but 
still  in  daily  use  and  perfect  condition. 

But  most  interesting  of  all  is  Santo  Domingo, 
erected  in  1509  and  still  an  impressive,  well  pre- 
served edifice.  Upon  a  serpent  carved  in  native 
wood  is  the  pulpit,  the  altar  is  beautiful,  and  there 
are  marvelously  carved  reredos,  while  beneath  the 
foot-worn  flooring  lies  many  an  old  don  and 
mailed  grandee  of  Old  Spain.  Here,  in  connec- 
tion with  the  church,  was  the  first  university  in 
America,  a  college  under  the  direction  of  gentle, 
peace-loving,  kind-hearted  Las  Casas.  Ever  he 
strove  to  win  his  fellow  countrymen  from  the  ruth- 
less slaughter  of  the  Indians ;  he  gave  his  life  to 
aid  the  helpless  aborigines  of  the  New  World,  and 
yet  he  found  time  to  write  the  only  reliable  history 
of  Columbus's  voyages,  and  here,  in  Santo  Domingo 
University,  he  taught  a  century  and  more  before 
the  coming  of  the  Mayflower. 

To-day  the  walls  of  the  college  are  in  ruins,  the 
names  of  those  who  studied  within  it  are  forgotten, 
but  ever,  in  the  annals  of  the  bloody  days  of  the 
Conquest  of  America,  the  name  of  Las  Casas  will 
stand  forth,  a  bright  and  shining  light  amid  the 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC  213 

black  turmoil  of  cruelty,  bigotry,  greed,  and  murder 
that  swept  the  New  World  with  fire  and  sword. 

Westward  from  the  capital  and  seventy  miles 
distant  is  Azua,  the  last  port  of  call  at  which  the 
steamers  touch,  and  an  important  town  in  a  vast 
sugar-producing  district. 

Founded  by  Diego  Velasquez,  conqueror  of 
Cuba,  in  1504,  Azua  was  first  situated  three  or  four 
miles  to  the  south  of  the  present  town,  but  was 
moved  because  of  repeated  earthquakes.  To-day 
it  is  a  desolate,  uninteresting  spot,  but  full  of 
historic  memories,  and,  if  ghosts  walk,  the  streets 
of  Azua  must  be  filled  with  a  brave  array  of  spirits 
of  long  dead  hidalgos,  for  here  dwelt  Hernando 
Cortez,  Pizarro,  Balboa,  and  many  another  dis- 
coverer and  conquistador  whose  names  are  familiar 
to  every  schoolchild. 

HAITI 

He  who  has  traveled  through  the  Dominican 
Republic,  or  who  has  skirted  its  shores,  will  have 
been  disillusioned  as  to  the  popular  idea  of  the 
island ;  but  there  is  another  side  to  the  picture,  the 
ugly,  black,  repulsive  side  known  as  Haiti. 
Strangely  enough,  although  the  two  republics  oc- 
cupy the  same  island  and  are  separated  only  by  an 
imaginary  boundary  line,  much  of  which  is  im- 
passable forest,  untrod  mountains,  or  unsettled 


214  THE  WEST  INDIES 

plains,  yet  the  two  are  as  distinct  as  if  on  different 
continents. 

On  the  one  side,  the  people,  language,  customs, 
manners,  and  ways  are  Spanish ;  foreign  capital  is 
welcomed;  the  natives  are  hospitable,  courteous, 
and — could  they  stop  fighting  among  themselves 
— progressive.  Across  the  border  they  are  back- 
ward, averse  to  improvement  or  civilization  and 
look  with  suspicion  and  hatred  on  every  stranger 
and  all  members  of  the  white  race,  and,  in  speech, 
manners,  and  names  are  French. 

In  the  Dominican  Republic  a  large  proportion 
of  the  inhabitants  are  white,  few  are  black,  and, 
by  the  widest  stretch  of  the  imagination,  it  could 
not  be  classed  as  more  than  a  light-brown  republic. 
In  Haiti,  on  the  other  hand,  the  majority  are  the 
blackest  of  the  black,  there  are  no  whites, — save 
the  few  foreigners  who  are  so  unfortunate  as  to 
reside  there  for  business  or  other  necessary  reasons, 
— and  light-colored  folk  are  in  the  minority. 

To  go  from  Haiti  into  the  Dominican  Republic 
is,  as  one  traveler  expressed  it,  "like  coming  out 
of  a  tunnel  into  sunlight, "  and  he  who  travels  from 
the  Dominican  Republic  to  Haiti  will  feel  as  if  he 
had  been  thrown  from  the  fresh,  sunlit  air  of 
day  into  a  noisome  pit  as  dark  as  night.  No  one 
visits  Haiti  for  pleasure  more  than  once,  no  one 
stops  there  longer  than  is  necessary;  and  yet  it  is 
a  rich  and  lovely  land,  even  more  fertile  and 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC  215 

luxuriant  than  its  neighboring  republic  if  that  be 
possible,  and,  under  other  conditions,  would  be 
idyllic. 

But  its  cities  are  crimes,  its  streets  mudholes, 
its  ports  pestholes,  and  its  people  little  more  than 
savages.  And  this  despite  the  fact  that  in  past 
days  its  towns  were  beautiful,  its  buildings  mag- 
nificent, its  boulevards  splendid,  and  its  roads 
perfect,  while  among  its  sons  it  has  numbered  men 
of  such  genius  and  fame  as  Alexander  Dumas, 
who  was  a  native  of  Jeremie. 

It  is  a  living  example,  an  indisputable  proof, 
that  the  negro  is  unfit  to  rule,  incompetent  to 
govern,  incapable  of  progress,  and  sure  to  revert 
to  barbarism,  slothfulness,  and  savagery  if  left  to 
himself.  And  this  is  no  reflection  upon  the  negro 
race.  The  trouble  is  we  expect  too  much  from  our 
black  brothers.  We  forget  that  they  are  but  a 
few  generations  from  jungle-reared  savages,  that 
the  negro  to-day  bears  somewhat  the  same  rela- 
tion to  ourselves  as  did  our  skin-clad  ancestors  to 
the  conquering  Romans  when  they  invaded  Britain. 
Under  proper  conditions,  under  a  wise,  just,  firm, 
and  powerful  guiding  hand,  the  negro  prospers  and 
develops,  as  witness  the  British  islands,  where 
many  of  the  African  race  rise  to  affluence  and 
prominence.  But  even  there,  with  every  advan- 
tage and  encouragement,  where  no  racial  prejudice 
exists,  the  majority  of  the  colored  race  never  rise 


216  THE  WEST  INDIES 

above  the  state  of  laborers,  with  no  ambition,  no 
intelligence,  no  desire  for  betterment.  Their  aim 
in  life  is  to  do  as  little  as  possible  to  keep  soul  and 
body  together,  to  bask  in  the  sun,  munch  sugar 
cane,  and  spend  their  days  in  idleness,  rags,  and 
ease.  Their  point  of  view  is  that  of  primitive 
man,  the  limits  of  their  horizon  are  bounded  by 
rum,  food,  and  warmth,  and  morality  never  enters 
their  minds,  if  indeed  they  know  the  meaning  of 
the  word.  Despite  all  their  faults  they  are  peace- 
able, law-abiding,  and  respectful  as  a  rule,  and  in 
most  cases  honest, — save  when  it  comes  to  help- 
ing themselves  to  fruit,  garden  truck,  or  food.  In 
many  of  the  islands  a  case  of  murder,  assault, 
highway  robbery,  rape,  or  burglary  has  never  been 
known,  and  one  may  travel  in  perfect  safety  and 
security  everywhere,  while  a  white  woman  may 
go  where  and  when  she  pleases  without  the  re- 
motest danger  of  molestation  or  even  insult. 

But  such  is  not  the  case  in  Haiti.  Here  the 
shortcomings,  the  failures,  the  savage  instincts  of 
the  blacks  have  been  fed  and  fostered  for  centuries. 
From  untamed  jungles  they  were  brought  in  reek- 
ing, pest-ridden  slave-ships  to  serve  beneath  the 
lash.  Debased,  untaught,  they  rose,  and,  in  a 
resistless  wave  of  black,  swept  the  dominating 
whites  from  the  land.  Then  were  loosened  all  the 
pent-up  hatred,  the  undying  lust  for  revenge,  the 
suppressed  savagery  of  the  African  races,  and 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC  217 

slaughter,  rapine,  incendiarism,  torture,  and  de- 
bauchery stalked  naked  through  the  stricken  land. 
Led  by  the  more  cunning,  and  no  less  savage, 
mulattoes,  the  negroes  spared  neither  young  nor 
old,  man  nor  woman,  and  committed  crimes  and 
outrages  beyond  the  power  of  imagination.  Then, 
to  retaliate,  the  French  also  mutilated,  flayed, 
roasted,  and  tortured,  and  whites  and  blacks  strove 
to  outdo  one  another  in  the  devilishness  of  the 
atrocities  committed  until,  from  end  to  end  of 
Haiti,  was  naught  but  burning  cities,  rivers  crim- 
soned with  blood,  streets  choked  with  corpses,  and 
the  wails  and  groans  of  the  wounded,  the  tortured, 
and  the  dying.  And  when  at  last  the  awful 
carnage  was  ended,  when  pestilence  had  come  to 
aid  the  blacks  in  driving  the  last  white  from  the 
fair  island,  can  we  wonder  that  the  civilization  of 
the  past,  the  years  of  prosperity  and  progress,  were 
forgotten,  that  the  Haitiens — steeped  in  blood, 
gorged  with  killings,  aflame  with  victory — relapsed 
into  the  ways  of  their  ancestors,  that  many  of 
them  took  to  the  "bush"  to  live  as  primitively  as 
their  forbears  in  the  jungle,  that  intrigue  after 
intrigue,  revolution  after  revolution,  murder  after 
murder  have  made  up  Haiti's  history,  or  that 
to-day  Voodooism  and  Obeah  hold  sway  and  in- 
credible things  happen  in  the  outlying  districts? 
The  only  wonder  is  that  any  vestige  of  civiliza- 
tion remains,  that  there  is  the  semblance  of  rule, 


218  THE  WEST  INDIES 

of  industry,  of  order,  in  the  republic,  and 
that  Haiti  is  not  far  blacker  than  it  has  been 
painted. 

Much  has  been  said  of  the  weird,  mysterious 
rites  of  Voodoo  and  Obeah  in  Haiti,  many  false- 
hoods have  been  told  and  many  truths  denied,  but 
that  both  Voodooism  and  Obeah  are  prevalent 
there  is  no  denying. 

But  these  things  are  by  no  means  confined  to 
Haiti.  They  are  rampant  in  all  the  islands  where 
the  negro  race  predominates,  especially  in  the 
French  colonies  and  the  British  colonies  that  were 
once  French.  There  is  a  vast  difference  between 
Obeah  and  Voodooism,  however, — although  most 
people  confuse  the  two  and  have  but  a  vague  idea 
of  the  real  meaning  of  either  term.  Voodooism  is 
a  religion  brought  over  with  the  negro  slaves  from 
Africa,  a  form  of  Devil  worship,  in  which  the 
principal  deity  is  the  Great  Green  Serpent  who  is 
represented  by  a  high  priest  and  priestess  known 
as  "Papa  Loi"  and  "Maman  Loi. "  In  its  most 
fanatical  form,  Voodooism  requires  human  sacri- 
fices, which  are  accompanied  by  cannibalistic 
feasts  and  unspeakable  orgies,  but  it  is  doubtful  if 
in  any  of  the  islands,  with  the  possible  exception 
of  the  interior  of  Haiti,  it  is  carried  to  such  ex- 
tremes. As  a  rule,  even  in  Haiti,  the  "goat  with- 
out horns" — as  the  devotees  call  the  child  to  be 
sacrificed — is  replaced  by  a  young  kid,  but  even 


'SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC  219 

in  this  modified  form  it  is  a  most  debasing,  dis- 
gusting, savage  institution. 

Obeah,  on  the  other  hand,  is  merely  witchcraft, 
with  no  religious  significance  whatever,  and  which, 
in  its  most  malignant  form,  consists  of  poisoning 
with  devilish  ingenuity,  and,  in  its  commonest  and 
least  virulent  form,  amounts  merely  to  a  lot  of 
nonsense,  hocus-pocus,  and  mummery.  But,  to 
the  negroes,  Obeah  is  a  very  real  and  awful  thing 
and  the  Obeah  Men  and  Women,  or  "Witch 
Doctors,"  are  beings  of  supernatural  power  and 
persons  to  be  dreaded  and  propitiated. 

Such  a  firm  hold  has  Obeah  upon  the  people, 
that  many  of  them  actually  are  killed  by  fright 
produced  by  the  "spells"  of  the  Obeah  Men. 
And  the  belief  in  Obeah  is  not  confined  to  the 
lower  classes,  or  the  ignorant  laborers,  for  many 
merchants  and  planters — even  officials — who  are 
intelligent,  well-to-do,  educated  men,  are  as  firm 
believers  in  Obeah  as  the  most  superstitious  peas- 
ants and  they  would  not  dream  of  undertaking 
any  serious  matter  without  first  consulting  their 
favorite  Obeah  Man  or  Woman. 

The  worst  phase  of  this  nonsensical,  ridiculous, 
despicable  black  art  is  the  fact  that,  in  order  to 
produce  the  most  powerful  of  their  "charms"  and 
nostrums,  the  Obeah  Men  must  employ  certain 
parts  of  human  beings,  and  to  procure  them  they 
often  kidnap  and  murder  children. 


220  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Every  effort  has  been  made  by  the  authorities 
to  suppress  Obeah  in  the  islands.  Men  and  women 
are  convicted,  fined,  and  imprisoned  constantly  for 
practicing  the  art,  and  executions  are  not  unusual 
when  murder  can  be  proved,  but  still  it  thrives  and 
holds  full  sway,  for,  to  the  negroes,  such  attempts 
to  stamp  out  Obeah  prove  its  genuineness.  As  one 
prominent  West  Indian  merchant  put  it,  "There 
must  be  something  in  it  if  the  Government  tries 
to  stop  it. "  And,  incredible  as  it  may  seem,  there 
is  something  in  it,  for  it  is  an  indisputable  fact 
that  many  of  the  Obeah  Men  and  Women  possess 
strange,  incomprehensible  powers — hypnotic  may- 
be— but  inexplicable,  and,  to  the  natives,  super- 
natural. Many  such  happenings  have  come  under 
my  personal  observation;  reliable  and  truthful 
Englishmen  and  white  West  Indians  can  vouch  for 
many  others,  and  volumes  might  be  written  on  the 
unsolved  mysteries  and  absolutely  baffling  oc- 
currences which  have  taken  place,  and  still  take 
place,  where  Obeah  is  practiced. 

Despite  the  deplorable  condition  of  Haiti,  de- 
spite the  depths  to  which  the  country  and  its 
people  have  fallen,  yet  there  is  much  to  be  seen  in 
the  republic;  but  distance  lends  enchantment  to 
the  view  most  .literally,  and  if  you  would  visit 
Haiti,  by  all  means  confine  your  trips  ashore  to 
the  hours  of  daylight  and  live  and  sleep  aboard 
ship. 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   221 

Port-au-Prince,  the  capital  and  largest  city,  is  a 
town  of  some  seventy  thousand  inhabitants  on  the 
western  coast.  With  every  natural  advantage  of 
situation,  climate,  and  a  splendid  harbor,  yet  Port- 
au-Prince  is  a  dirty,  wretched,  forlorn  city.  Its 
once  beautiful  buildings  are  semi-ruins  surrounded 
by  squalid  huts;  the  splendidly  laid-out  streets  and 
squares  are  filled  with  holes,  pools  of  stagnant 
water  and  festering  garbage,  and  ebony-hued 
negroes  and  negresses  add  a  touch  of  opera-bouffe 
appearance  to  the  scene  by  driving  and  promenad- 
ing the  sorry  thoroughfares  dressed  in  the  latest 
European  fashions,  with  all  the  lavish  display  so 
dear  to  the  heart  of  the  African. 

There  are  a  few  good  buildings  in  the  town, 
among  them  the  National  Palace,  where  the  gor- 
geously uniformed  negro  who  chances  to  fill  the 
office  of  president  holds  sway.  Fronting  the  palace 
is  an  unkempt  field,  known  as  the  Champ  de  Mars, 
and  near  at  hand  is  the  huge  cathedral  wherein 
the  images  of  the  Saints,  and  even  the  Virgin,  are 
painted  brown  and  black  to  match  the  predominat- 
ing hue  of  the  republic. 

Many  of  the  stores  are  large  and  well  stocked, 
the  offices  of  the  consuls,  the  steamship  companies, 
and  the  foreign  merchants  are  clean,  well  kept,  and 
attractive,  and  there  are  several  quite  imposing 
buildings,  such  as  the  churches,  the  National 
Foundry,  and  the  schools,  for,  strangely  enough, 


222  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Haiti,  with  all  its  shortcomings,  is  alive  to  the  im- 
portance of  education,  and  schools  are  numerous. 

Port-au-Prince  possesses  tram-car  lines  and  a 
railway  extends  from  the  city  into  the  interior, 
while  the  streets  literally  teem  with  licensed  cabs 
or  "busses,"  which  are  a  necessity  rather  than  a 
luxury,  for,  to  traverse  the  rough  and  filthy 
streets  afoot,  is  like  a  journey  through  purgatory. 

Few  of  the  well-to-do  Haitiens,  or  foreign  mer- 
chants, of  Port-au-Prince  dwell  in  the  town,  but, 
instead,  make  their  homes  at  La  Coupe,  a  beauti- 
fully situated  suburb  about  five  miles  from  the 
city  and  at  an  elevation  of  1200  feet  above  the 
sea,  and  which  is  well  kept,  attractive,  and  with 
many  really  fine  residences. 

Westward  along  the  Tiburon  Peninsula  lies 
Miragoane,  at  the  edge  of  a  mountainous  district 
and  in  the  midst  of  a  rich  coffee  and  logwood 
section. 

Still  farther  west  is  Jeremie, — famous  as  the 
birthplace  of  Alexander  Dumas  the  elder, — a 
sugar  and  coffee  port,  as  well  as  the  outlet  of  a 
wonderfully  fertile  but  neglected  district. 

On  the  southern  coast  of  the  Tiburon  Peninsula 
are  Aux  Cayes  and  Jacmel,  the  first  an  important 
port  for  sugar,  coffee,  dyewoods,  etc.,  and  the  latter 
of  interest  mainly  as  an  example  of  the  depths  to 
which  a  beautifully  situated  town  can  descend 
when  under  the  irresponsible  rule  of  the  black  race. 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC  223 

North  of  the  capital,  at  the  foot  of  the  slope  of 
the  Atribonite  Valley,  is  Saint  Marc,  a  location  of 
marvelous  scenic  beauties,  but  which  figures  in 
Haitien  annals  principally  as  the  frequent  battle- 
ground of  warring  political  factions,  and  the  visitor 
who  passes  it  by  at  a  distance  will  lose  nothing  of 
interest  thereby. 

Farther  north  on  the  same  bay  is  Gonaives, 
commercially  important  for  its  mahogany,  log- 
wood, and  agricultural  products,  while  still  farther 
north,  around  the  tip  of  the  peninsula  and  within 
sixty  miles  of  Cuba,  is  Mole  St.  Nicholas,  with  the 
famous  pirate  stronghold  of  Tortuga  just  off  the 
coast.  Opposite  this  great  island  is  the  town  of 
Port-de-Paix,  a  fairly  flourishing  port  as  Haitien 
ports  go,  and  just  beyond  is  Acul,  a  spot  so  replete 
with  natural  beauties  that  Columbus  named  it 
Val  de  Paraiso  or  "The  Vale  of  Paradise. " 

The  last  of  Haiti's  towns  upon  the  northern  coast 
is  Cape  Haitien,  commonly  known  as  "The  Cape. " 
In  former  days  a  center  of  such  wealth,  luxury, 
and  elegance  that  it  was  called  "Little  Paris, "  Cape 
Haitien  to-day,  has  become  a  ramshackle  city  of 
hovels  which  have  sprung  up,  like  repulsive  fungus 
growths,  from  the  decaying  ruins  of  former 
grandeur. 

Near  Cape  Haitien  is  the  famous  Black  King's 
Castle  and  the  Palace  of  Sans  Souci;  the  former 
the  most  remarkable  structure  in  the  West  Indies. 


224  THE  WEST  INDIES 

The  Black  King,  Christophe,  was  a  personage 
scarcely  less  remarkable  than  his  castle.  A 
negro  "general"  of  the  insurrectionists,  Christophe 
and  his  followers  were  in  possession  of  Cape  Haitien 
when  attacked  by  the  French  under  General 
Leclerc,  and  deeming  discretion  the  better  part  of 
valor,  he  fired  the  town  and  retreated  with  his 
"army"  to  the  forest-covered  hills.  But  this  was 
by  no  means  the  last  to  be  heard  of  him,  for  in 
1811  he  proclaimed  himself  King  of  Haiti,  assum- 
ing the  title  of  "King  Henry  I, "  honoring  his  black 
wife  with  the  title  of  "Queen,"  and  creating  a 
brand-new  black  nobility  consisting  of  Princes  of 
the  Royal  Blood,  three  Princes  of  the  Kingdom, 
eight  Dukes,  twenty  Counts,  thirty-seven  Barons, 
and  eleven  Chevaliers,  every  one  of  whom  had 
either  been  a  slave  or  was  the  descendant  of  a 
slave. 

Surrounded  by  this  comic-opera  court  Chris- 
tophe reigned  with  all  the  pomp  and  ceremony  of  a 
true  sovereign,  with  nine  palaces,  eight  chateaux, 
innumerable  horses  and  carriages  of  state,  a  small 
army  of  retainers,  and  an  immense  bodyguard. 

At  the  head  of  the  Millot  Valley  the  remains  of 
his  most  imposing  palace  still  stand  in  the  most 
beautiful  of  settings.  Scarcely  more  than  a  skele- 
ton, overgrown  with  jungle,  yet  its  impressive 
size  testifies  to  its  one-time  magnificence.  Here, 
surrounded  by  every  luxury  and  beauty  his 


SANTO  DOMINGO,  THE  HISTORIC   225 

imagination  could  picture  or  his  money  buy,  the 
Black  King  held  levee  in  the  days  of  his  short, 
dramatic  reign,  finally  ending  his  picturesque 
career  by  committing  suicide  within  the  palace, 
and  by  his  last  act  showing  consistency  in  his 
character  by  using  a  bullet  of  solid  silver. 

But  the  most  wonderful  and  astonishing  of 
Christophe's  performances  was  the  erection  of  the 
fortress  of  La  Ferriere,  some  twenty  miles  from 
Cape  Haitien.  On  the  very  summit  of  the  lofty, 
pyramidal  mountain,  the  Black  King  built  a  mighty 
fortress  with  immense  walls  towering  above  the 
mountaintop  for  over  one  hundred  feet. 

Surrounded  by  a  deep,  wide  moat  spanned  by  a 
solitary  drawbridge,  and  mounting  hundreds  of 
cannon,  the  place  was  well-nigh  impregnable.  Even 
more  wonderful  than  the  fort  itself  are  the  in- 
credible amount  of  labor  and  the  stupendous  out- 
lay that  must  have  been  required  to  level  off  the 
solid,  living  rock  of  the  mountain  and  erect  the 
fortress. 

To  this  lonely  mountain  peak  in  the  vast  soli- 
tary forest  every  stone  and  every  gun  were  hoisted 
up  the  steep  slope  by  gangs  of  ignorant  blacks, 
driven  by  a  pitiless  semi-savage  monarch,  and  at 
such  a  wanton  sacrifice  of  life  that  the  fort  liter- 
ally is  founded  on  human  bones. 

Within  the  enormous  interior  of  his  citadel  King 
Henry  stored  incredible  quantities  of  supplies  and 
is 


226 


THE  WEST  INDIES 


ammunition  and   in  the  massive  treasure  vault 
deposited  a  fortune  worth  over  $3,000,000. 

But  the  fortress  might  have  been  a  fort  of  card- 
board for  all  the  value  it  proved,  for  the  foe  which 
Christophe  dreaded  never  came,  and  the  cannon 
on  the  mountaintop  were  never  called  upon  to 
defend  the  stronghold  of  the  Black  King.  To-day 
the  lofty  citadel  stands  deserted,  its  treasure 
chambers  empty,  its  guns  thick  with  rust,  its 
walls  conquered  by  the  ever-encroaching  jungle, 
but  so  massive,  so  immense,  so  enduring  that  for 
centuries  it  will  remain  a  marvelous  monument 
to  the  stupendous  folly  of  the  strange  character 
who  crowned  himself  the  First  King  of  Haiti. 


CHAPTER  XV 

PORTO  RICO,  OUR  WEST  INDIAN  COLONY 

A  TUMBLED  mass  of  hazy,  purple  mountains 
against  the  sky;  a  line  of  silvery  foam,  where 
azure  sea  meets  palm-fringed  shores;  a  frowning, 
massive  fortress  upon  a  rocky  headland,  and  be- 
yond it  buildings  gleaming  red,  yellow,  blue,  and 
white — such  is  Porto  Rico  viewed  from  the  sea. 

Slowly  the  ship  steams  beneath  the  grim,  age- 
gray  walls  of  Morro, — still  bearing  the  scars  of 
Sampson's  shells, — past  the  low-lying  Canuelo 
fort  upon  its  islet,  and  through  the  narrow  harbor 
entrance.  Along  the  wave-washed,  rocky  shore 
stretches  the  great  city  wall  with  ancient  water- 
gate  and  lantern-like  sentry  boxes,  while  topping 
its  further  angle  is  the  Santa  Catalina  palace, 
now  the  residence  of  the  governor,  and  above  all 
gleam  the  snowy  walls  of  Casa  Blanca,  house  of 
Ponce  de  Leon.  Scarce  is  there  time  to  note 
these  famous  buildings  ere  the  point  is  passed, 
and  San  Juan  spreads  like  a  many-colored  pano- 
rama above  the  blue  waters  of  the  bay.  Great 
docks  line  the  water-front,  a  forest  of  masts  hides 

227 


228  THE  WEST  INDIES 

the  lower  buildings,  and  above  them,  upward  to 
the  summit  of  the  hill,  rises  the  bright-hued, 
picturesque  old  Spanish  town. 

Over  all,  dominant,  stupendous,  gray,  and  solid 
as  the  rocks  themselves,  towers  the  vast  fortress 
of  San  Cristobal — a  very  mountain  of  masonry 
and  which,  with  the  Morro,  has  defended  San 
Juan  against  all  comers  for  three  centuries  and 
more. 

Looming  in  sharp  contrast  high  above  the  older 
buildings  of  Spanish  type  are  steel  and  stone 
edifices  of  modern  architecture,  the  skyscrapers  of 
San  Juan,  while  to  the  left  is  the  immense  new 
Federal  Building  and  to  the  right  the  big  railway 
station.  Through  steep  and  narrow  streets,  which 
have  scarce  altered  in  three  hundred  years,  roar 
clanging  trolley  cars  and  honking  automobiles; 
gasoline  launches  puff  busily  among  the  lateen- 
rigged  sailing  boats  that  savor  of  the  Mediter- 
ranean ;  the  swarthy  faces  and  babel  of  Spanish  on 
the  docks  are  thoroughly  foreign,  and  yet  every- 
where the  Stars  and  Stripes  wave  over  buildings, 
forts,  and  palaces.  Wherever  we  turn  is  this  same 
strange  mixture  of  the  ancient  and  the  modern, 
the  present  and  the  past,  of  sights  familiar  and 
scenes  that  are  strange,  and,  stepping  ashore,  the 
visitor  scarce  knows  if  he  is  in  an  American  port 
or  a  city  of  Old  Spain. 

Everywhere  are  color,  warmth,  and  light ;  on  all 


PORTO  RICO  229 

sides  is  a  touch  of  the  Oriental;  over  all  is  the 
atmosphere,  the  spell  of  the  tropics,  and  yet  on 
every  hand  are  the  evidences  of  twentieth-cen- 
tury life,  business,  and  progress.  Indeed,  it  is 
this  very  rubbing  of  elbows  of  the  old  and  new 
that  is  one  of  the  greatest  charms  of  Porto  Rico. 

San  Juan,  despite  its  age,  its  crumbling  ruins,  and 
its  quaint,  canon-like  byways  redolent  of  Old 
Spanish  days,  is  a  modern,  busy,  bustling  Ameri- 
can city  in  many  ways,  with  a  fascination  all  its 
own,  and  with  much  of  real  interest  to  be  seen. 

Up  from  the  docks  at  the  head  of  the  Marina 
leads  a  typical  business  street — the  Calle  San 
Justo.  On  one  side  stands  the  Santa  Ana 
church,  dating  from  the  sixteenth  century,  and 
across  the  way  is  the  imposing  building  of  the 
American  Bank  three  centuries  younger,  while 
lining  the  smooth  and  well-paved  thoroughfare 
are  shops  and  stores  filled  with  every  article 
known  to  modern  life. 

Between  plate-glass  display  windows  are  huge 
archways  revealing  glimpses  of  dim  cool  patios 
and  passages  that  hint  of  mystery;  above  electric 
signs,  advertising  graphophones  and  motor-car 
accessories,  are  jutting  Moorish  balconies  and  iron- 
barred  windows,  while  Yale  locks  serve  to  secure 
massive  doors  through  which  have  entered  mail- 
clad  knights  of  Spain. 

At  San  Francisco  Street  turn  to  the  left  and  the 


230  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Plaza  Principal  is  reached, — an  open,  paved  square 
shaded  by  beautiful  trees  and  surrounded  by  large 
buildings  and  busy  stores.  On  the  north  stands 
the  City  Hall,  or  Alcaldia,  built  in  1799;  to  the 
west  is  the  Intendencia  Building;  on  the  south  are 
stores  belonging  mainly  to  American  firms,  and 
before  them,  at  the  curb,  stands  a  long  line  of 
waiting  automobiles  and  jitneys  ready  to  whirl 
the  visitor  wherever  he  wishes  about  the 
island. 

In  whichever  direction  one  turns  there  are  sure 
to  be  places  and  buildings  of  historic  interest.  To 
the  northwest,  the  great  dome  of  the  ancient 
cathedral  looms  above  the  flat  roofs,  a  massive 
structure  of  severely  plain  architecture  and  within 
which  rest  the  remains  of  the  founder  of  the  city, 
Juan  Ponce  de  Leon. 

Not  far  distant,  to  the  southwest^of  the  plaza,  is 
the  governor's  residence,  the  palace  of  Santa  Cata- 
lina,  with  its  huge  throne-room,  audience-cham- 
bers, and  mosaic-paved  courts  and  stairways. 
Beyond  the  palace,  and  almost  directly  in  front  of 
the  cathedral,  is  the  immense  water-gate  in  the 
city  wall  and  to  the  right  of  this  the  Casa 
Blanca  towers  high  among  its  waving  palms  upon 
the  heights. 

Although  popularly  supposed  to  have  been  the 
residence  of  Ponce  de  Leon,  history  does  not 
bear  out  the  claim,  but  points  to  its  having  been 


PORTO  RICO  231 

erected  for  the  adopted  son  of  the  famous  searcher 
for  the  Fountain  of  Youth  and  who  assumed  the 
name  of  his  illustrious  foster-father.  But,  regard- 
less of  associations,  the  Casa  Blanca  is  a  splendidly 
preserved  type  of  old  Spanish  mansion.  At  the 
summit  of  the  ridge  on  which  the  city  stands  is  old 
San  Jose  church,  squat,  hoary  with  age,  and 
facing  a  small  plaza,  in  the  center  of  which  is  a 
statue  of  De  Leon  cast  from  cannons  captured  by 
the  Spanish  from  the  British,  while  in  the  tiled 
roof  of  the  church  is  the  wound  made  by  an  Ameri- 
can shell, — about  the  only  material  damage  done 
to  the  town  when  Sampson  unsuccessfully  tried 
his  hand  at  reducing  the  Morro. 

But  if  you  would  see  ancient  buildings,  by  all 
means  visit  the  fortresses  of  San  Cristobal  and 
San  Sebastian,  or  old  Morro,  with  their  mazes  of 
underground  galleries,  their  subterranean  tunnels, 
their  tomb-like  dungeons,  within  which  prisoners 
were  secured  by  iron  bars  across  their  necks  and 
left  to  die  a  lingering,  awful  death.  Veritable 
cities  in  themselves,  these  vast  citadels  were 
capable  of  sheltering  hundreds — even  thousands 
— of  people,  and  within  them  the  entire  popu- 
lation of  the  city  could  seek  refuge  in  the  olden 
times  when  foes  attacked  the  town. 

And  these  are  by  no  means  all  the  sights.  There 
are  the  extensive  new  market;  the  pantheon  or 
cemetery;  the  Balleja  Barracks,  capable  of  housing 


232-  THE  WEST  INDIES 

two  thousand  troops;  the  prison,  a  model  institu- 
tion which  is  a  revelation  to  northern  eyes;  the 
splendid  old  churches,  with  their  wonderful 
decorations,  their  jewel-decked  images,  and  their 
paintings  by  old  masters;  the  old  monasteries, 
now  occupied  as  police  barracks  and  courts;  and 
the  Plaza  Colon  with  its  beautiful  statue  of 
Columbus. 

But  interesting  as  is  San  Juan,  it  is  a  hot  spot 
during  the  day,  and  far  more  attractive  is  the 
interior  of  the  island,  with  its  mountain  heights, 
its  broad,  rich  valleys,  its  winding  rivers,  and  its 
fresh,  cool,  life-giving  air.  Everywhere  are  per- 
fect roads,  smooth,  broad,  beautifully  graded, 
wonderfully  kept,  marvels  of  engineering  skill, 
and  affording  a  score  and  more  of  fascinating 
tours  by  automobile. 

Although  but  eighty-five  miles  in  length  and 
thirty-five  in  width,  Porto  Rico  can  boast  of 
nearly  one  thousand  miles  of  highways  which 
encircle  the  island,  connect  all  the  important 
towns  and  villages,  and  form  a  network  across 
mountains,  valleys,  and  plains  over  which  the 
products  and  imports  of  the  island  are  trans- 
ported by  bull  carts,  mule  teams,  and  motor 
trucks. 

Most  important  and  best  known  of  all  the 
island's  roads  is  the  famous  Military  Road,  built 
by  the  Spaniards  years  before  the  American 


PORTO  RICO  233 

occupation,  but  still  the  best  of  the  highways  and 
leading  across  the  backbone  of  the  island  from 
San  Juan  to  Ponce. 

Outward  from  the  busy  city  streets  a  splendid 
asphalt  boulevard  leads  past  the  railway  station, 
the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  Building,  the  theater,  and 
under  the  frowning  walls  of  San  Cristobal,  to  the 
suburb  of  Puerto  Tierra.  Here,  in  the  olden 
days,  was  the  land  gate  in  the  city  wall,  from 
which  the  suburb  took  its  name,  but  now  no  vestige 
of  the  gate  and  only  isolated  fragments  of  the  wall 
remain.  At  this  spot  the  true  Military  Road 
begins,  and  a  mile  or  so  farther  on  it  crosses  the 
splendid  San  Antonio  bridge,  with  quaint  old  San 
Geronimo  on  its  jutting  cape  at  the  left  and  half- 
ruined  walls  and  brush-filled  moats  on  the  right. 
Here  the  island  of  San  Juan  is  left  behind,  and 
the  mainland  of  Porto  Rico,  with  the  charmingly 
pretty  suburb  of  Santurce,  is  reached.  This  is 
the  residential  suburb  of  San  Juan,  a  place  of 
villas,  bungalows,  and  mansions  hidden  amid 
flowers,  shrubbery,  and  palms,  and  with  many 
typically  American  houses,  ornately  ugly,  built 
of  concrete  and  utterly  unfitted  to  a  tropical  land, 
as  well  as  glaringly  out  of  place  amid  such  beauti- 
ful surroundings.  Prominent  beside  the  roadway 
are  the  buildings  of  the  Union  Club,  the  Miramar 
Theater,  and  the  American  Hotel,  all  charmingly 
situated  and  with  a  lovely  view  across  the  bay  to 


234  THE  WEST  INDIES 

San  Juan  on  the  one  hand  and  past  Fort  San 
Gcronimo  to  the  open  sea  on  the  other. 

Between  embowered  grounds  and  splendid 
gardens  stretches  the  wide  smooth  highway,  and 
over  it  passes  a  never-ending,  fascinating,  motley 
stream  of  traffic — a  kaleidoscopic  panorama  of 
life  and  color.  Galloping  horsemen,  pannier- 
laden  horses,  diminutive  donkeys  hidden  under 
great  loads  of  cane  or  grass,  lumbering  army 
wagons  with  six  clattering  mules  driven  by  khaki- 
clad  troopers,  snorting,  roaring  motor  trucks, 
creaking  bull  carts,  swift-speeding  touring  cars, 
whirring  motorcycles,  and  luxurious  private 
carriages  pass  and  repass,  while  threading  their 
way  between  the  vehicles,  and  trudging  along  the 
narrow  footpaths  by  the  wayside,  are  natives  of 
every  color,  class,  and  trade.  Lean,  swarthy 
Porto  Ricans,  barefooted,  but  bearing  themselves 
with  the  dignity  of  grandees,  Herculean  negroes, 
buxom  negresses,  some  with  bundles  on  their 
heads,  come  carrying  trays,  others  with  baskets 
on  their  arms,  and  still  others  pushing  barrows; 
vendors  of  fruit,  bread,  vegetables,  eggs,  fowls, 
ice  cream,  beverages,  and  sweets,  while  queerest 
of  all  are  the  funny  miniature  stores  on  wheels, 
some  in  the  form  of  houses,  others  fashioned  like 
steamships,  others  like  trolley  cars,  still  others 
like  nothing  "on  earth,  the  heavens  above  or 
the  waters  beneath,"  but  with  the  owners  of 


STREET    IN    PONCE,    PORTO    RICO 


CITY    WALL   AND    CASA    BLANCA.    PORTO    RICO 


PORTO  RICO  235 

each  and  every  one  literally  doing  a  pushing 
business. 

White,  black,  yellow,  brown,  and  olive;  men, 
women,  girls,  and  boys — a  score  of  races,  count- 
less types,  a  hundred  trades  and  occupations, 
crowd  this  great  artery,  this  "King's  Highway," 
that  leads  from  the  modernized  teeming  city 
into  the  vast  interior;  from  the  sweltering,  glaring 
streets  and  noisy  traffic  of  the  capital  to  the 
wide  free  sweep  of  valleys  and  the  cloud-draped 
mountaintops,  for  this  is  the  only  road  leading 
outward  from  San  Juan,  and  over  it  passes  all  the 
overland  traffic  of  the  entire  island. 

Beyond  Santurce  the  road  curves  through 
meadows  covered  with  cocoanut  groves,  over  the 
beautiful  Martin  Pefia  bridge,  through  the  vil- 
lage of  Hato  Rey,  and  into  the  little  town  of  Rio 
Piedras. 

Far  more  Spanish-American  is  this  little  town 
than  San  Juan,  but  it  lacks  nothing  in  the  way 
of  modern  improvements  and  has  many  new  and 
handsome  buildings,  such  as  the  Capuchin  Mon- 
astery, the  Municipal  Hospital,  the  Insular  Nor- 
mal School,  and  the  University  of  Porto  Rico. 
Here  also  are  the  reservoir  from  which  the  capital 
obtains  its  water  supply,  the  repair  shops  of  the 
railway  and  trolley  companies,  and  a  public  garden 
and  botanic  park  on  the  site  of  the  old  summer 
palace  of  the  Spanish  Governor-General. 


236  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Straight  through  the  town  the  highway  con- 
tinues, and  onward  across  an  almost  level  plain 
beyond,  while  to  east  and  south  the  foothills 
rise  in  broken  spurs  and  conical  eminences,  becom- 
ing higher  and  more  rugged  towards  the  distant 
Luquilla  Range  with  its  purple  summits  hidden 
in  the  clouds. 

Soon  the  road  commences  to  ascend,  winding  by 
easy  grades  and  graceful  curves,  in  many  places 
with  an  asphalt  surface,  and  slowly  climbing 
higher  and  higher,,  but  so  gradually  one  scarce 
realizes  the  ascent.  Beside  the  roadway  wave 
feathery  masses  of  giant  bamboos;  towering  royal 
palms  shade  the  way,  and  through  the  foliage  one 
sees  glimpses  of  deep  valleys  and  steep  hillsides 
richly  green,  while  thatched  and  wattled  huts 
nestle  amid  gardens  of  plantains  and  bananas. 
Every  moment  new  and  more  lovely  scenes  are 
revealed,  until,  swinging  around  a  sharp  bend 
and  rumbling  over  an  ancient  picturesque  Spanish 
bridge,  La  Muda  is  reached.  A  little  later  the 
last  ridge  is  topped  and  the  Caguas  Valley  lies 
below,  with  the  little  red-roofed  town  in  the  midst 
of  cane  and  tobacco  fields  bordered  by  the  silver 
ribbons  of  the  Tenabo  and  Caguas  rivers.  Caguas 
is  a  thriving  little  town  of  some  25,000  inhabi- 
tants about  twenty-five  miles  from  San  Juan  and 
in  the  heart  of  a  rich  tobacco  district.  On  all  sides 
the  great  thatched  drying  sheds  stand  prominently 


PORTO  RICO  237 

above  the  fields  which,  in  growing  time,  appear 
as  if  covered  with  snowdrifts,  owing  to  the  immense 
area  of  cheesecloth  stretched  above  the  tender 
plants. 

The  streets  of  Caguas  are  well  kept;  there  are 
numerous  shops  and  restaurants  and  two  hotels  in 
the  town,  as  well  as  a  pretty  palm-embowered 
plaza  and  a  picturesque  church. 

The  low,  one-story  stuccoed  buildings,  with  their 
roofs  of  heavy  Spanish  tiles,  give  an  old,  foreign, 
picturesque  appearance  to  the  town,  but  Caguas 
is  by  no  means  out  of  date  and  has  many  fine 
buildings,  a  good  library,  a  hospital,  one  of  the 
finest  schools  in  the  island,  and  some  enormous 
tobacco  warehouses,  while  all  the  streets  and 
houses  are  provided  with  electric  lights.  More- 
over, a  railway  connects  the  town  with  San  Juan, 
and  telephone  lines  keep  it  in  constant  communi- 
cation with  all  other  parts  of  the  island. 

Beyond  Caguas,  the  Military  Road  crosses  a 
fairly  level  valley  through  an  avenue  of  gleaming, 
scarlet-flowered  poinciana  trees  which  form  an 
arch  of  living  flame  above  the  roadway,  while 
ahead  tower  the  lofty  mountains.  Soon  the  circu- 
lar valley  is  left  behind  and  again  the  road  climbs 
the  foothills  and  in  sweeping,  serpentine  curves 
ascends  the  mountainside. 

Ever  upward  mounts  the  road,  crossing  deep 
barrancas  on  age-old  Spanish  bridges,  skirting  the 


238  THE  WEST  INDIES 

brinks  of  dizzying  precipices,  twisting  in  sharp 
hairpin  curves  about  jutting  mountainsides  and 
beetling  cliffs,  while  far  below  are  the  broad  green 
fields,  the  glistening  rivers,  and  the  cultivated 
hillsides.  Nowhere  is  the  grade  unduly  steep,  and 
yet,  within  fifteen  miles,  the  road  rises  two  thou- 
sand feet  above  the  valley.  The  air  is  fresh,  cool, 
and  bracing,  and  giant  tree  ferns,  gorgeous  flowers, 
air  plants,  orchids  and  banks  of  trailing  ferns 
grow  in  profusion  beside  the  roadway.  Then  the 
last  ridge  is  reached  and  from  the  summit 
the  road  swings  quickly  down  to  Cayey  with  the 
immense  military  barracks  standing  boldly  forth 
against  the  background  of  the  smiling  valley.  -j 

Although  the  descent  to  Cayey  is  considerable, 
yet  the  town  is  at  an  elevation  of  1300  feet  above 
the  sea  and  has  a  cool  and  healthy  climate,  where 
coffee  and  tobacco  grow  to  perfection.  But 
while  the  town  is  clean,  quaint,  and  picturesque  it 
has  little  of  interest,  aside  from  the  fact  that  it 
was  at  this  spot  that  the  advancing  American 
troops  were  halted  by  the  signing  of  the  peace 
protocol  while  marching  to  attack  San  Juan. 

Leaving  the  rough  uneven  streets  of  Cayey  be- 
hind, the  road  once  more  climbs  upward  on  a 
mountain  range  even  loftier  than  those  already 
passed,  and  at  every  turn  one  marvels  at  the 
stupendous  labor  which  must  have  been  expended 
in  hewing  the  highway  from  the  mountain  slopes, 


PORTO  RICO  239 

a  marvelous  piece  of  work  which  will  ever  remain 
an  enduring  monument  to  the  skill  of  the  old 
Spanish  engineers  who  built  it. 

Creeping  around  wall-like,  towering  cliffs  at 
the  verges  of  sheer  precipices,  stretching  across 
narrow  knife-edged  ridges,  the  road  unfolds  a 
glorious  scenic  panorama  until  at  an  altitude  of 
three  thousand  feet  one  looks  down  upon  Aibonito 
sleeping  on  a  green  and  rolling  plain  girt  round 
with  majestic  mountain  peaks. 

And  at  the  lovely  sight  one  involuntarily 
exclaims,  "How  beautiful!"  the  very  words  which, 
in  their  Spanish  form, — Ai  bonito! — gave  to  the 
town  its  name. 

Aibonito  is  an  important  coffee  and  tobacco 
town,  with  hospitals,  schools,  hotels,  and  well-kept 
streets  and  stores,  and  situated  in  its  charming 
valley  two  thousand  feet  above  the  sea  it  possesses 
a  delightful,  healthy  climate;  but  unfortunately 
the  accommodations  for  strangers  are  of  the  most 
primitive  description,  as  is  the  case  in  nearly  all 
the  smaller  Porto  Rican  towns.  Hotels  there  are 
to  be  sure  and  every  effort  is  made  to  please, 
but  the  cooking  is  Spanish,  the  food  reeks  with 
grease,  and  the  night  life  of  the  bedrooms  is 
altogether  too  friendly  and  attentive.  For- 
tunately it  is  seldom  necessary  to  stop  overnight 
in  the  outlying  towns,  for  the  distances  be- 
tween Ponce  and  San  Juan,  by  any  route,  are 


240  THE  WEST  INDIES 

not  so  great  that  the  trip  cannot  be  made  in 
a  day. 

At  Aibonito  it  seems  as  if  one  must  be  at  the 
very  roof  of  the  island,  but  there  are  still  heights 
beyond  to  be  climbed,  and  through  dense  groves 
of  coffee,  riotous  masses  of  flowering  shrubs  and 
vines,  thickets  of  tree  ferns,  and  deep  verdured 
ravines,  the  road  mounts  upward  until,  at  Aibonito 
Pass,  3300  feet  in  the  air,  the  backbone  of  Porto 
Rico  is  reached  and  one  looks  down  on  every  side 
at  a  scene  of  marvelous  grandeur. 

Sheer  from  the  narrow  ridge,  scarce  wide  enough 
to  bear  the  road,  the  earth  drops  off  a  thousand 
feet  and  more  on  either  hand.  In  every  direction 
stretch  rich  green  valleys,  towering  peaks,  vast 
mountain  heights,  and  verdured  hills.  In  the  dim 
and  shadowy  depths  of  cool  ravines  are  glimpses 
of  sparkling,  foaming  torrents;  tiny  huts  peep 
from  bowers  of  fruit  trees  or  perch  upon  the  very 
brinks  of  awful  precipices,  and  far  to  the  south- 
ward— a  line  of  shimmering  blue  beyond  the  far- 
off  hazy  foothills — sparkles  the  Caribbean  Sea. 

From  this  lofty  aerie  all  is  down  hill,  and  swiftly 
the  road  dips  down  in  sinuous  curves,  sharp  turns, 
and  great  spiral,  corkscrew  twists  until,  within  a 
distance  of  six  miles,  Coamo  is  reached  at  a  scant 
five  hundred  feet  above  sea  level. 

Coamo,  founded  in  1606,  has  a  hospital,  many 
schools,  a  pretty  plaza,  neat  houses,  and  well-kept 


PORTO  RICO  241 

streets,  and  produces  quantities  of  coffee,  sugar, 
fruits,  and  vegetables;  but,  in  a  general  way,  all 
this  is  equally  true  of  almost  any  other  town,  for 
all  the  interior  cities  of  Porto  Rico  are  much  alike. 
There  are  always  the  same,  straight,  smooth  main 
street,  the  narrow  cobbled  byways,  the  bright- 
hued,  stuccoed  buildings  with  their  red-tiled 
roofs,  the  omnipresent  plaza  with  its  immense 
church,  and  one  town  has  little  more  of  interest 
than  the  next. 

Near  Coamo,  however,  are  the  famed  Coamo 
Springs,  the  waters  of  which  possess  wonderful 
medicinal  properties,  and  here  there  are  a  large, 
splendidly  equipped  hotel,  a  sanitarium,  and  baths, 
surrounded  by  entrancing  scenery  and  in  a  glorious 
climate  of  perpetual  June. 

Soon  after  leaving  Coamo,  the  road  passes 
through  the  little  town  of  Juana  Diaz,  hence  it 
crosses  the  level  coastal  plain, — under  arches  of 
flaming  poincianas  and  between  pastures  which 
might  well  be  in  New  England  for  all  they  savor  of 
the  tropics, — until  the  outlying  streets  of  Ponce  are 
reached. 

Ponce  has  little  of  historic  interest,  but  to  many 
visitors  it  proves  more  attractive  than  San  Juan, 
for  it  is  absolutely  different  from  the  capital  and 
has  a  distinctive  character  of  its  own  and,  as 
far  as  appearances  go,  it  might  well  be  in  another 
land.  Whereas  San  Juan  is  built  upon  a  hillside 

16 


242  THE  WEST  INDIES 

and  there  is  scarce  a  level  street  in  the  town,  Ponce 
is  level  as  a  floor  and  not  a  hilly  street  can  be  seen. 
In  the  capital,  three,  four,  and  even  six-story  build- 
ings give  a  modern  aspect  to  the  city,  but  hardly 
a  structure  in  Ponce  rises  higher  than  two  stories. 
Far  more  Spanish-American  is  Ponce  than  San 
Juan,  with  buildings  of  bright  hues  and  massive 
Spanish  architecture,  shadowy  patios,  innumerable 
palms  and  flowering  plants,  and  intensely  tropical 
in  appearance.  And  thoroughly  tropical  is  the 
climate  as  well,  far  hotter  than  San  Juan,  though 
somewhat  tempered  by  the  sea  breeze  that  usually 
prevails. 

In  the  center  of  the  city  are  a  large  shaded  plaza 
with  an  imposing  cathedral,  an  ornamental  kiosk 
for  the  band,  and  a  fearfully  and  wonderfully 
painted,  red,  blue,  white,  and  black  fire-engine 
house,  wherein  the  hand  engine  and  hose  carts 
repose  in  all  their  glory  of  red  and  gold,  while  the 
"bomberos, "  or  firemen,  loll  about,  sweltering 
in  red  flannel  shirts,  huge  helmets,  and  jack  boots, 
expectantly  waiting  for  a  fire. 

One  really  pities  these  poor  Ponce  firemen,  for 
they  are  ever  ready  and  waiting  for  a  conflagration 
which  rarely  occurs,  for  five  fires  a  year  would  be 
a  record  in  this  town  of  stone  and  concrete  and 
whose  buildings  contain  scarce  enough  wood 
to  make  a  respectable  bonfire.  Surely  un- 
limited patience  must  be  the  prime  requisite 


PORTO  RICO  243 

in  securing  a  position  on  Ponce's  fire-fighting 
force. 

There  are  many  magnificent  private  residences 
in  Ponce,  a  large  covered  market  of  great  interest 
to  strangers,  several  hospitals  and  asylums, 
numerous  clubs,  telephone  and  electric  lighting 
systems,  an  ice  factory,  cigar  and  cigarette  fac- 
tories, a  hippodrome,  a  baseball  field,  motion  pic- 
ture theaters,  and  a  splendid  theater  known  as  La 
Perla,  not  to  mention  the  well-stocked  stores,  the 
numerous  restaurants,  and  half  a  dozen  hotels, 
some  of  which  are  excellent. 

Everywhere  are  flowers  and  growing  plants,  and 
scarce  a  patio,  a  balcony,  or  a  garden  is  seen 
which  is  not  gorgeous  with  blooms,  for  the  people 
are  passionately  fond  of  flowers  and  the  climate  is 
most  favorable  to  vegetation.  So  much  so,  in  fact, 
that  even  the  telephone,  telegraph,  and  electric- 
light  wires  serve  as  rootholds  for  orchid-like 
air-plants  which  give  the  strands  the  appearance 
of  being  decorated  with  innumerable  birds'  nests. 

Industrially  and  commercially  Ponce  is  the 
second  city  in  Porto  Rico  and  is  the  shipping  port 
for  the  principal  sugar  and  coffee  districts,  and  yet 
the  casual  visitor  sees  little  that  savors  of  exten- 
sive commerce  or  business. 

This  is  due  to  the  fact  that  the  "playa,"  or  shore, 
and  the  "muelle, "  or  dock,  are  nearly  two  miles 
from  the  city  and  reached  by  trolley  or  by  a  maca- 


244  THE  WEST  INDIES 

dam  highway ;  but  the  road  is  rough  and  unpleasant 
and  the  trolley  hot  and  stuffy  and,  aside  from  the 
long  causeway  terminating  in  the  enormous  steel 
warehouse  and  dock,  there  is  little  of  interest 
at  the  city's  water-front. 

From  Ponce,  roads  lead  to  various  parts  of  the 
island,  and  the  visitor  may  travel  by  motor  car  or 
railway  to  many  interesting  spots.  Westward 
a  road  leads  through  Penuelas,  Yauco,  Sabana 
Grande,  and  San  German  to  Mayaguez.  To  the 
north  a  highway  may  be  followed  through  Ad  jun- 
tas and  Utuado  to  Arecibo,  while  easterly  one  may 
travel  through  various  shore  towns  to  Guayama 
and  Humacao  and  from  either  of  these  towns 
may  turn  inland  to  Cayey  or  Caguas  on  the  Mili- 
tary Road,  or,  if  preferred,  the  route  may  be  con- 
tinued completely  around  the  eastern  shore  of  the 
island. 

The  steamers  of  the  Porto  Rico  Line  sail  around 
the  island  from  San  Juan  to  Ponce  and  return, 
stopping  at  Arecibo  and  Mayaguez,  and  affording 
excellent  opportunities  for  seeing  these  two  cities, 
but  if  possible  to  do  so,  the  visitor  should  by  all 
means  see  the  interior  of  the  island  by  touring  its 
roads,  for  some  of  the  most  interesting  places,  and 
by  far  the  most  beautiful  scenery,  are  far  from  the 
coast.  The  Arecibo  road  is  very  beautiful  and 
passes  through  some  of  the  few  remaining  areas  of 
virgin  forest  on  the  island.  Adjuntas,  about  twelve 


PORTO  RICO  245 

miles  north  of  Ponce,  is  the  first  town  reached 
and  is  at  an  elevation  of  nearly  1800  feet  above 
the  sea,  in  a  rich  coffee  district.  It  is  located  in  a 
lovely  valley  surrounded  by  mountains,  some  of 
which  are  over  three  thousand  feet  in  height  and 
from  whose  summits  the  traveler  may  gaze  north 
upon  the  Atlantic  and,  by  turning  his  head,  may 
look  across  the  Caribbean  to  the  south,  while 
east  and  west  stretches  the  whole  vast  panorama 
of  the  islands,  spread  like  a  map  of  checkered 
green  at  his  feet. 

Utuado,  the  next  town  on  this  road,  is  in  the 
midst  of  wonderfully  grand  and  imposing  moun- 
tain scenery;  rugged,  majestic,  and  with  many 
naked  precipitous  peaks  projecting  far  above  the 
verdure,  while  tumbling  mountain  torrents  plunge 
in  foaming  cataracts  amid  the  luxuriant  growth  of 
tree  ferns,  orchids,  and  strange  exotic  plants. 

Arecibo  is  a  very  old  and  interesting  town, 
founded  in  1537,  and  with  a  population  of  about 
ten  thousand.  It  is  by  far  the  most  typically 
Spanish-American  city  on  the  island  and  was 
formerly  surrounded  by  great  swamps  and  was 
very  unhealthy,  but  the  swamps  have  been 
drained  and  converted  into  fertile  sugar  lands, 
and  to-day  the  town  is  as  healthy  as  San  Juan 
itself.  There  are  numerous  stores  in  Arecibo, 
a  very  beautiful  plaza  on  the  water-front,  a 
good  hotel,  and  every  modern  improvement, 


246  THE  WEST  INDIES 

and  the  town  is  connected  by  railway  with  San 
Juan. 

Westward  from  Arecibo,  on  the  railway  line  and 
also  on  the  automobile  road  to  Mayaguez,  is 
Aguadilla,  and,  while  the  road  is  by  no  means 
as  interesting  or  beautiful  as  many  others,  the 
town  is  worth  a  visit,  as  it  was  here  Columbus 
first  landed  on  Porto  Rican  soil.  He  was  in 
search  of  water  for  his  ships,  and  filled  his  casks  at 
a  spring  which  gushed  forth  near  the  beach  and 
which  he  named  "Ojo  de  Agua,"  or  "The  Water's 
Eye."  To-day  the  same  spring  serves  to  supply 
Aguadilla's  people  with  water  and  is  covered  with 
an  ornate  commemorative  fountain.  The  honor 
of  the  historic  visit  of  Columbus  is  also  claimed  by 
Aguada,  farther  to  the  west,  but  there  is  little 
doubt  that  the  Ojo  de  Agua  is  the  original  Colum- 
bus spring.  But  even  without  its  claim  to  such 
fame,  Aguada  is  of  historic  interest,  for  it  was 
founded  by  Soto  Mayor,  one  of  Ponce  de  Leon's 
officers.  The  first  settlement  was  destroyed  by 
Indians,  however,  although  its  ruins  may  still  be 
seen.  The  present  town  has  a  population  of  about 
twelve  thousand  and  is  in  a  rich  sugar  and  coffee 
district,  while  cigar  and  hat  making  are  important 
industries. 

As  the  road  from  Arecibo  to  Aguada  and  Maya- 
guez is  not  as  perfect  as  one  could  wish  and  has  no 
great  scenic  interest,  it  is  wisest  to  make  the  journey 


MARTIN    PCNA    BRIDGE,    PORTO    RICO 


TOBACCO    UNDER    SHADE,    PORTO    RICO 


PORTO  RICO  247 

by  rail,  while,  if  one  wishes  merely  to  see  Maya- 
guez,  it  may  be  visited  to  best  advantage  by  the 
steamship. 

A  few  miles  south  of  Aguada,  and  about  three 
miles  from  the  sea,  is  Anasco,  founded  in  1773,  and 
with  about  two  thousand  inhabitants ;  it  is  of  inter- 
est solely  as  being  on  or  near  the  spot  where  the 
Indians  first  discovered  that  the  Spaniards  were 
not  superior  beings.  Here,  by  the  Anasco  River, 
an  unfortunate  Spaniard — one  Salcedo — fell  into 
the  hands  of  the  natives  and,  feeling  some  doubt  as 
to  the  Europeans'  immortality,  which  they  had 
not  questioned  heretofore,  the  Indians  decided 
to  make  a  test  case  of  Salcedo.  They  proceeded 
very  much  after  the  manner  of  our  own  forefathers 
when  testing  accused  persons  for  witchcraft, 
namely,  by  holding  the  poor  Don  under  water,  and 
probably  arguing  that  if  he  was  immortal  the 
enforced  immersion  would  do  him  no  harm,  while, 
if  mortal,  the  means  would  be  justified  by  the  end. 
Needless  to  say  the  result  of  the  experiment 
was  highly  satisfactory  to  the  savages,  regardless 
of  Salcedo's  opinion,  and  to  make  assurance  doubly 
sure  the  Indians  guarded  the  body  with  the  great- 
est care  until  the  tropical  climate  proved  beyond 
all  question  the  false  assumptions  under  which 
they  had  been  laboring. 

Mayaguez,  the  third  of  Porto  Rican  towns  in 
commercial  importance,  was  founded  in  1763  and 


248  THE  WEST  INDIES 

has  a  population  of  some  forty  thousand  inhabi- 
tants. In  the  minds  of  many  people  Mayaguez  is 
the  prettiest,  most  attractive,  and  most  picturesque 
city  on  the  island,  and  there  is  no  denying  its 
charms. 

Upon  a  smiling,  fertile  plain  or  "Vega"  the  city 
stands,  facing  the  deep  and  well-protected  harbor 
to  the  west  and  with  ranges  of  wooded  mountains 
rich  with  coffee  groves  for  a  background.  Beauti- 
fully situated,  surrounded  by  wonderfully  fertile 
lands,  and  with  an  excellent  harbor,  Mayaguez 
possesses  every  advantage,  and  the  progressive 
people  of  the  town  have  made  the  best  of  what  a 
bounteous  nature  has  provided.  No  wonder  the 
inhabitants  are  proud  of  their  town,  for  they  have 
exerted  every  effort  to  make  their  home  as  beauti- 
ful, as  attractive,  and  as  up-to-date  as  possible,  and 
wonderfully  well  have  they  succeeded. 

The  city  may  not  be  able  to  boast  of  ancient 
forts,  battle-scarred  walls  and  crumbling  ruins,  but 
its  seaside  drive  along  the  playa,[its  four  charming 
plazas,  its  wide  straight  streets,  its  cleanliness  and 
modernity  make  up  for  all  that  the  town  lacks  in 
antiquity  or  historic  interest.  But  there  is  much 
of  real  interest  in  Mayaguez.  Its  great  market- 
place, its  numerous  churches,  its  beautiful  homes, 
its  public  library,  and  its  Agricultural  Experiment 
Station  are  all  worth  seeing  and,  moreover,  the 
town  is  the  terminus  of  two  railroads. 


PORTO  RICO  249 

The  plazas  of  Mayaguez  are' famous  throughout 
the  island,  the  three  most  notable  being:  Columbus 
Square,  with  its  beautiful  statue  of  Columbus; 
Flower  Square,  with  its  glorious  wealth  of  flowers 
and  foliage ;  and  Old  Plaza,  each  of  which  is  differ- 
ent from  all  the  others,  each  lovely  in  its  own  way, 
but  all  equally  neat,  well  kept,  and  so  clean  that 
they  would  prove  models  for  our  own  cities  to 
follow. 

At  Mayaguez  the  visitor  may  obtain  the  best  of 
the  beautiful  drawn  work  and  embroidery  of  the 
island,  the  work  of  the  inmates  of  the  convent 
near  the  town.  Here  too  are  found  the  best  of  the 
Porto  Rican  hats,  woven  from  palm  and  equal  to 
many  of  the  genuine  Panamas,  while  in- the  market 
one  may  find  innumerable  native  curios  and  speci- 
mens of  handiwork  not  seen  elsewhere  on  the 
island. 

Southward  from  Mayaguez,  on  the  line  of  the 
western  railway,  is  San  German,  founded  in  1512, 
and  named  by  Diego  Columbus,  Viceroy  of  Santo 
Domingo  and  son  of  the  discoverer.  Historically 
San  German  is  very  interesting,  as  it  has  been 
attacked  and  destroyed  repeatedly  by  Indians, 
pirates,  freebooters,  and  European  foes,  and  after 
each  misfortune  it  was  rebuilt  in  a  different  spot. 
As  a  result  the  uneasy  little  town  has  jumped  from 
pillar  to  post  over  quite  a  wide  area  during  its 
troubled  existence,  but  it  must  have  been  anchored 


250  THE  WEST  INDIES 

to  its  present  site  for  some  time,  as  the  ancient 
church,  the  Convento  de  Porta  Cceli,  bears  the  date 
of  1538,  and  several  other  buildings  in  the  town 
date  from  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries. 

Beautifully  situated  in  the  hills  above  a  rich 
valley,  San  German  is  most  picturesque  and  is 
often  called  the  "City  of  the  Hills, "  and  moreover 
it  is  blessed  with  a  delightfully  cool  and  healthy 
climate.  Indeed,  even  the  old  Spaniards  realized 
this  and  used  the  spot  for  the  purpose  of  acclimat- 
ing the  fresh  troops  brought  from  Spain  and,  to 
house  them,  built  the  huge  barracks  which  still 
remain. 

Old  as  it  is  San  German  is  progressive  and  has 
two  banks,  eight  wholesale  business  houses,  nu- 
merous retail  stores,  a  theater,  four  hotels,  several 
churches,  a  city  hall,  a  municipal  library  and 
market,  many  schools,  and  modern  lighting  and 
sanitation. 

Eastward  from  San  German,  on  the  road 
to  Ponce,  are  Sabana  Grande,  Yauco,  Guanica, 
Guayanilla,  and  Penuelas,  of  which  Guanica  is  the 
only  town  of  much  interest  to  the  casual  visitor. 
Here  is  the  immense  Guanica  Central,  one  of  the 
largest  and  most  important  of  Porto  Rican  sugar 
mills,  but  more  interesting  to  most  visitors  is 
the  fact  that  it  was  here  that  General  Miles  landed 
with  the  United  States  troops  when  he  invaded 
Porto  Rico  on  July  25,  1898. 


PORTO  RICO  251 

*( 

Traveling  east  from  Ponce  along  the  southern 
coast  are  many  towns,  some  quaint,  others  beauti- 
ful, others  interesting,  and  all  of  which  may  be 
reached  either  by  motor  car  or  by  the  railway 
from  Ponce  to  Guayama. 

Aside  from  the  towns,  the  southern  coastal 
plain  of  the  island  has  much  of  interest  in  itself  for 
those  who  really  care  to  see  the  features  of  our  only 
West  Indian  possession.  This  is  the  great  sugar 
district  of  the  island,  and  broad  cane  fields  stretch 
away  to  the  distant  mountains  for  mile  after  mile. 
In  many  places  the  land  is  very  dry,  and  immense 
irrigation  systems  are  necessary  to  insure  the 
crops.  In  this  dry  district  also  there  are  many 
miles  of  low  saline  plains  stretching  inland  from 
the  sea,  and  on  which  grow  giant  cacti,  agaves, 
Spanish  bayonet,  clumps  of  coarse  grass,  and  other 
desert  plants  and  which,  with  the  herds  of  grazing 
cattle,  make  one  think  of  Arizona  or  the  Mexican 
border,  rather  than  of  a  Caribbean  island.  But  as 
one  travels  eastward  the  fertility  of  the  land 
increases,  streams  and  rivers  wind  down  from  the 
mountains,  the  hills  approach  more  closely  to  the 
shore,  and  rich  vegetation  covers  the  land  until, 
at  Guayama,  the  luxuriant  verdure  of  the  tropics 
is  on  every  side. 

Guayama,  the  first  important  city  eastward 
from  Ponce  on  the  southern  coast,  is  a  flourishing 
town  of  some  eighteen  thousand  inhabitants, 


252  THE  WEST  INDIES 

with  many  fine  buildings,  a  beautiful  plaza  with 
an  immense  pink,  domed  church,  numerous  schools 
and  busy  stores,  and  is  in  direct  communication 
with  San  Juan  by  a  line  of  motor  busses  which 
travel  back  and  forth  over  the  magnificent  highway 
which  leads  from  Guayama  to  the  Military  Road 
near  Cayey. 

Beyond  Guayama  on  the  coast  road  are  Arroyo, 
Patillas,  and  Maunabo,  all  wonderfully  quaint, 
picturesque,  foreign-looking  towns,  while  Arroyo 
is  of  real  interest  as  being  the  first  spot  to  use  the 
telegraph  in  Porto  Rico,  a  line  having  been  in- 
stalled there  by  Samuel  F.  B.  Morse,  the  inventor, 
while  on  a  visit  to  relatives  who  owned  a  nearby 
sugar  estate.  Beyond  Patillas  the  road  climbs 
a  steep  cliff,  and  for  several  miles  the  traveler 
skirts  the  verge  of  a  precipice,  with  the  breaking 
surf  and  palm-fringed  beach  beneath  and  the 
wonderfully  blue  sea  stretching  away  to  the 
wraith-like  cloud  that  marks  Culebra  Island  to 
the  southeast. 

Rounding  the  last  cliff,  the  highway  winds  down 
to  a  broad  and  fertile  valley  and  soon  after  passes 
through  Maunabo.  Beyond  this  quaint  and 
picturesquely  pretty  little  spot,  the  ascent  of  the 
mountains  begins,  the  roadway  winding  back  and 
forth  and  roundabout  like  a  huge  red  serpent  and 
affording  marvelous  vistas  of  deep  gorges,  lofty 
peaks,  tumbling  mountain  streams,  and  flashing 


PORTO  RICO  253 

cascades,  while  through  the  roadside  foliage  are 
glimpses  of  the  distant  valley  and  the  sea  beyond. 

Topping  the  ridge,  the  road  sweeps  grandly 
down  to  the  lovely  valley  of  Yabucoa,  past  the 
Central  Mercedes,  and,  crossing  several  rivers, 
enters  Humacao. 

Typically,  intensely  Spanish  is  Humacao,  but 
neat  and  scrupulously  clean,  with  a  charming 
little  plaza.,  wide  streets,  and  substantial  buildings, 
among  which  are  numerous  stores,  several  churches, 
a  library,  and  a  fairly  good  and  very  clean  hotel. 
Beautifully  situated  and  full  of  glowing  color  is 
the  town,  with  mountains  surrounding  its  lovely 
valley  on  three  sides.  Within  six  miles  is  the 
ocean,  from  which  the  cool  trade  winds  bring 
fresh,  life-giving  whiffs  of  sweet  salt  air,  while 
all  about  are  well-tilled  fields  and  neat  gardens, 
the  whole  presenting  an  effect  of  prosperity  and 
contentment  which  is  very  pleasing. 

From  Humacao  a  road  leads  to  Caguas  and  the 
Military  Road,  while  another  highway  encircles 
the  eastern  end  of  the  island,  passing  through 
Fajardo,  Loiza,  and  Carolina  and  finally  meeting 
the  Military  Road  at  Rio  Piedras. 

Although  the  Military  Road  is  the  only  direct 
highway  out  of  San  Juan,  yet  one  may  travel  by 
motor  car  or  railway  along  the  northern  coast  of 
the  island  to  Arecibo  or,  if  traveling  by  automo- 
bile, the  visitor  may  follow  the  Comercio  road  and 


254  THE  WEST  INDIES 

again  reach  the  Military  Road  near  Aibonito. 
This  route  affords  scenery  of  unrivaled  grandeur, 
a  roadway  marvelous  for  the  engineering  feats 
displayed  in  its  construction,  and  a  trip  which  may 
be  made  in  a  single  day. 

Crossing  from  San  Juan  by  the  little  ferryboat 
at  the  Marina,  the  town  of  Cantano  is  reached 
on  the  opposite  side  of  the  harbor,  a  typical  West 
Indian  village  surrounded  by  immense  mangrove 
swamps.  From  Cantano  the  way  leads  over  the 
swamps  by  a  high,  broad  causeway  to  the  town  of 
Bayamon,  a  thriving  little  city  with  several  fac- 
tories, some  fine  buildings,  and  splendid  streets 
and  of  great  historic  interest.  Indeed,  Bayamon 
might  truthfully  claim  to  be  the  most  historic 
spot  on  Porto  Rico,  not  excepting  San  Juan,  for 
it  was  founded  by  Ponce  de  Leon  himself  in  1509, 
and  moreover  it  is  close  to  the  spot  where  the  fa- 
mous old  knight  first  set  foot  on  Porto  Rican'  £oil 
and  where  he  made  his  first  settlement,  the  Villa  de 
Caparra.  Later  this  became  known  as  the  City 
of  Puerto  Rico,  the  capital  of  the  island  of  San 
Juan  de  Bautista.  In  1521  the  original  town  site 
was  abandoned,  owing  to  its  defenseless  position, 
and  the  settlers  moved  bag  and  baggage  across 
the  bay  and  founded  the  present  city  of  San  Juan, 
while  the  old  name  of  their  capital  was  bestowed 
upon  the  island  itself. 

All  about  Bayamon  are  orchards  of  grapefruit 


THE    MEETING    OF    THE    OLD    AND    NEW.    PORTO    RICO 


A    MOUNTAIN    HIGHWAY,    PORTO    RICO 


PORTO  RICO  '255 

and  oranges  and  fields  of  pineapples,  for  this  is  the 
principal  fruit-growing  district  of  the  island  and 
has  been  wonderfully  built  up  and  developed  by  the 
American  planters,  whose  neat  bungalows  are  seen 
here  and  there  among  the  trees  laden  with  their 
golden  fruit. 

At  Bayamon  the  road  forks,  the  right-hand 
branch  leading  onward  to  Arecibo,  while  the  turn 
to  the  left  carries  one  inland  to  Comercio.  For 
several  miles  it  rises  and  falls  over  low-rolling 
hills,  until  the  long  iron  bridge  across  the  Rio 
Plata  is  reached.  Here  the  highway  commences 
its  steady  climb  up  the  mountains,  following  the 
sides  of  the  deep  valley  and  with  the  gleaming  Rio 
Plata  tumbling  seaward  in  its  rocky  bed  between 
the  emerald  mountain  slopes.  Gradually  it  mounts 
higher  and  higher  above  the  stream,  until  the  river 
seems  but  a  thread  of  silver  tracing  a  devious  way 
at  the  bottom  of  the  gorge.  Then,  from  ahead, 
a  strange  sound  is  borne  upon  the  breeze,  a  distant 
muffled  roar  and,  turning  a  bend  in  the  road,  one 
comes  within  sight  of  the  mighty  dam  of  the 
Porto  Rico  Lighting  and  Power  Company, — a 
stupendous,  flashing  cataract  of  water  pouring 
between  verdured  hills  with  the  roar  of  distant 
thunder,  while  beyond  stretches  the  vast  artificial 
lake,  placid  and  calm,  with  the  towering  moun- 
tains mirrored  on  its  glassy  surface. 

Onward  and  upward  beyond  this  great  hydro 


256  THE  WEST  INDIES 

power  plant,  the  highway  leads  until  Comercio  is 
reached,  a  mountain  town  with  the  hillsides  about 
so  thickly  covered  with  royal  palms  that  the  spot 
was  formerly  called  Sabana  de  Palma  or  "Palm 
Meadow." 

From  Comercio  the'road  winds  about  the  precipi- 
tous mountainsides,  piercing  jutting  promonto- 
ries in  wall-sided  cuttings,  clinging  like  a  twining 
vine  to  cliffs  and  spurs,  and  anon  winding  and 
doubling  by  such  enormous,  circuitous  twists  that 
one  may  glance  downward  at  half  a  dozen  tiers  of 
roadway  upon  the  slopes  beneath. 

When,  at  last,  the  devious  turns,  the  mighty 
horseshoe  curves,  and  the  innumerable  loops  come 
to  an  end  and  the  traveler  emerges  at  the  summit 
of  the  wind-swept  mountaintop,  he  looks  upon  a 
glorious  panorama  unequaled  in  any  other  part  of 
Porto  Rico :  a  marvelous  array  of  rugged  towering 
peaks,  deep  valleys,  broad  plateaus,  and  terrific 
gorges  of  a  thousand  shades  and  tints;  golden  in 
the  sunshine,  indigo  beneath  the  shadows  of  pass- 
ing clouds,  opalescent,  purple,  mauve  and  lavender, 
emerald  and  azure,  while,  like  a  vast  red  labyrinth, 
the  road  cuts  sharply  through  the  greenery,  and 
silver  streams  and  red-roofed  villages  gleam  in  the 
abysmal  depths  of  valleys. 

From  this  most  lofty  point  the  road  sweeps 
quickly  down  through  groves  of  coffee,  tangled 
jungles  of  tropic  plants,  and  clumps  of  royal  palms 


PORTO  RICO  257 

to  Barranquitas.  Here,  in  the  center  of  the 
coffee-covered  hills,  one  needs  an  overcoat  and 
blankets  after  sundown,  for  Barranquitas  is  the 
loftiest  town  in  Porto  Rico  and  the  coolest,  and 
even  at  midday  there  is  no  hint  of  the  tropics  in 
the  air. 

Beyond  Barranquitas,  through  shady  copses  of 
coffee  trees  and  deep  cool  jungles  of  luxuriant 
mountain  plants,  the  way  slopes  gradually  down, 
to  come  forth  at  length  upon  the  Military  Road 
a  mile  or  two  above  Aibonito. 

But,  to  describe  in  detail  all  the  charming 
sights,  the  interesting  trips,  the  magnificent  scen- 
ery, the  wonderful  roads,  or  the  manifold  attrac- 
tions of  Porto  Rico,  would  require  a  volume  in  itself. 
Much  that  the  other  islands  have  is  lacking ;  but 
much  that  Porto  Rico  has,  no  other  land  can 
boast,  and  in  many  ways  it  offers  attractions  not 
to  be  found  elsewhere  in  the  world.  It  is  but  four 
days'  sail  from  New  York — scarcely  farther  than 
Des  Moines,  Iowa;  there  are  no  bothersome 
customs  examinations  to  be  undergone,  it  is  pro- 
vided with  every  necessity  and  luxury  of  modern 
life,  it  is  healthier  than  any  city  in  the  United 
States,  its  roads  are  a  revelation,  it  is  not  volcanic, 
there  are  no  poisonous  reptiles,  and,  best  of  all  in  the 
minds  of  many,  it  is  under  our  own  government, 
our  own  laws,  and  our  own  flag. 

But  do  not  imagine  because  the  island  is  an 


258  THE  WEST  INDIES 

American  colony  that  you  will  feel  thoroughly  at 
home  in  Porto  Rico.  Do  not  delude  yourself 
with  the  idea  that  you  will  be  able  to  converse  in 
English  with  everyone  you  meet,  and  don't  go  to 
Porto  Rico  puffed  up  with  the  importance  of  being 
an  American  citizen  and  expect  to  lord  it  over 
the  natives,  white,  black,  or  brown. 

You  will  find  Porto  Rico  as  foreign,  as  strange, 
as  incomprehensible  in  many  ways  as  any  Euro- 
pean country.  You  can  get  along  in  the  towns  and 
stores  and  in  the  American  hotels  and  business 
houses,  as  well  as  on  the  railways,  with  English 
alone,  but  while  English  is  the  "official"  language 
of  the  island  many  officials  do  not  speak  it,  and 
nearly  everyone  finds  Spanish  necessary,  while 
not  one  Porto  Rican  in  a  hundred,  in  the  interior, 
can  speak  or  understand  our  tongue.  Even  in 
some  of  the  larger  stores  in  San  Juan,  there  is  not 
a  clerk  who  can  speak  English  intelligently. 
Moreover,  you  will  find  that  with  all  our  short- 
comings as  colonizers,  Porto  Rico  is  governed  for 
the  Porto  Ricans,  and  he  who  goes  about  figura- 
tively dressed  in  the  American  flag  is  looked  upon 
with  contempt  and  ridicule  by  Porto  Ricans  and 
resident  Americans  alike.  You  will  not  be  in 
Porto  Rico  for  long,  ere  you  learn  that  the  Porto 
Rican — white  or  colored — looks  upon  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  race  with  much  the  same  feelings  that  the 
Anglo-Saxon  regards  the  Latin  and  the  man  of 


PORTO  RICO  259 

color,  and  that  to  enter  their  social  life,  their 
homes — to  get  a  real  insight  of  the  Porto  Rican 
character — is  as  difficult  a  task  for  the  American 
as  for  the  rich  man  to  enter  the  portals  of  Paradise. 

Eighteen  years  have  passed  since  the  Stars  and 
Stripes  first  floated  above  Porto  Rico,  and  while 
great  changes  have  been  wrought  by  our  adminis- 
tration, yet  much  of  the  old,  with  its  charm — the 
foreign  old-world  character  and  picturesqueness 
of  Spanish  days — remains  unchanged. 

In  many  ways  Porto  Rico  has  been  American- 
ized, yet,  save  on  the  surface,  it  is  as  un-American 
as  ever.  Our  sanitation  has  transformed  the 
island  from  a  pest-hole  to  the  second  healthiest 
country  on  the  globe;  our  capital  has  brought 
industry,  progress,  and  prosperity  to  the  land ;  our 
laws  have  righted  many  wrongs;  our  schools  have 
educated  thousands  of  Porto.  Rican  children,  and 
the  natives  are  thoroughly,  sincerely,  intensely 
patriotic;  but  in  speech,  manners,  many  of  their 
customs,  and  home  life  they  are  still  Spanish  to  the 
core. 

And  this  is  as  it  should  be.  We  cannot  expect 
the  traditions,  blood,  ties,  inheritance,  and  civili- 
zation of  centuries  to  give  way,  to  be  tossed 
aside  and  revolutionized,  in  a  score  of  years  or  less. 
The  Porto  Ricans  are  of  a  different  race  than 
ourselves,  and  we  should  not  be  misled  into  think- 
ing that  any  Latin  will  ever  become  Anglo-Saxon 


260  THE  WEST  INDIES 

in  ideas,  thoughts,  manners,  or  ideals, — we  cannot 
graft  the  palm  upon  the  pine, — and,  truth  to  tell, 
we  could  learn  much  to  our  own  benefit  and  advan- 
tage from  our  Porto  Rican  neighbors. 

We  have  given  them  much, — for  which  they  are 
keenly  grateful, — but  we  have  robbed  them  of 
much  that  was  dear  to  their  hearts.  They  wel- 
comed us  with  open  arms  when  we  came  unbidden 
to  their  land ;  they  have  proved  loyal,  law-abiding, 
worthy,  and  yet  we  have  failed  to  treat  them  as 
equals,  or  even  as  equals  of  the  colored  inhabitants 
of  the  United  States  or  the  black  and  brown 
people  of  Hawaii. 

We  have  refused  them  citizenship — the  right  to 
rule  and  govern,  or  even  to  have  an  audible  voice 
in  their  own  island.  No  wonder  they  are  more  or 
less  aloof,  no  wonder  they  chafe  and  feel  injustice 
done  them,  for  they  are  neither  aliens  nor  Ameri- 
cans, but  merely  "people  of  Porto  Rico."  Like 
their  island  they  are  legally  neither  one  thing  nor 
the  other,  neither  "fish,  fleshy  fowl,  or  good  red 
herring. " 


CHAPTER  XVI 

JAMAICA,    THE    ISLAND    WHERE    A    PIRATE    RULED 

LARGEST  of  the  British  West  Indies,  and  third 
largest  of  the  Greater  Antilles,  is  Jamaica,  and 
yet,  as  compared  with  Cuba  or  Santo  Domingo  it 
is  very  small,  for  its  area  is  less  than  one  tenth 
that  of  Cuba  and  about  one  sixth  that  of  Santo 
Domingo.  But  within  its  4200  square  miles  of 
mountain,  valley,  and  plain  is  much  entrancing 
scenery,  numerous  peaks  a  mile  and  more  in 
height,  wonderfully  rich  valleys,  magnificent 
forests,  great  waterfalls  and  tumbling  mountain 
torrents,  and  tranquil  rivers  without  end ;  indeed, 
the  island  received  its  name  owing  to  the  number 
of  its  streams,  the  Indian  word  xamayca  signifying 
"a  land  of  springs  and  streams." 

About  the  island's  shores  are  many  landlocked 
harbors  and  many  busy  thriving  ports,  while  rail- 
ways connect  the  more  important  towns  and  the 
opposite  shores  of  the  island,  and  over  two  thou- 
sand miles  of  perfect  roads  cover  the  surface  with  a 
veritable  network  of  highways. 
261 


262  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Of  all  the  islands  Jamaica  is  probably  the  best 
known  and  the  most  frequently  visited,  and 
yearly  thousands  of  Northerners  make  the  trip 
to  Jamaica,  or  pass  the  winter  months  in  its  balmy, 
tropical  climate.  To  many,  Jamaica  is  distinctly 
a  British  island,  but  its  discovery,  its  settlement, 
and  its  start  on  the  road  to  civilization,  prosperity, 
and  cultivation,  were  all  due  to  the  Spaniards,  who 
remained  in  possession  of  the  island  for  150  years 
or  until  it  was  wrested  from  them  by  the  British  in 
1655.  As  is  the  case  with  most  of  the  British 
West  Indies,  England  cannot  claim  to  be  anything 
more  than  stepmother  to  Jamaica,  and  the  former 
Spanish  ownership  is  still  kept  green  by  such 
names  as  Rio  Cobre,  Rio  Nuevo,  Rio  de  Oro, 
Sabana  la  Mar,  etc.,  while  even  the  typically 
British  "Bog-Walk"  is  merely  a  corruption  of 
the  more  euphonious  Spanish  name,  "Boca  de 
Agua"  (water's  mouth). 

While  there  is  nothing  unusual  about  this, — 
for  the  chronic  struggle  for  supremacy  between 
European  nations  and  the  kaleidoscopic  shifting 
of  sovereignty,  were  common  to  all  the  islands, — 
yet  Jamaica  has  the  unique  distinction  of  having 
been  governed  by  a  pirate,  the  redoubtable, 
ruthless  Henry  Morgan. 

Of  all  the  cruel,  bloodthirsty,  swashbuckling 
sea  robbers  who  sailed  the  Spanish  Main,  Morgan 
was  preeminently  the  most  atrocious,  the  most 


JAMAICA  263 

daring,  the  bravest,  and  the  most  famous,  or  in- 
famous, and  despite  his  rascality  and  his  murder- 
ous, nefarious  ways,  we  cannot  help  but  admire  his 
courage,  his  romantic,  adventurous  deeds,  and  his 
marvelous  feats.  But  the  supreme  triumph  of 
his  career  came  when,  after  his  spectacular  sack  of 
Panama,  he  was  sent,  a  prisoner,  to  England,  and 
instead  of  being  hanged — as  he  richly  deserved — 
he  was  knighted  and  appointed  Lieutenant-Gov- 
ernor  of  Jamaica  and  Commander-in-Chief  of  the 
British  forces  in  the  island. 

No  doubt  the  King  of  England  bore  in  mind  the 
old  adage  that  "it  takes  a  thief  to  catch  a  thief"  and 
wisely  decided  that  the  best  man  to  clean  up  the 
nest  of  pirates  in  Jamaica  was  the  ex-chieftain  of 
the  corsairs.  In  this  shrewd  surmise  His  Majesty 
was  not  far  wrong,  for,  to  give  Morgan  his  due, 
his  word  was  as  good  as  his  bond,  and  in  his  new 
position  this  most  dreaded  of  freebooters  wasted 
neither  pity  nor  mercy  on  his  former  companions 
and  followers,  but  sent  them  to  the  gallows  and 
the  gibbet  most  impartially  and  expcditiously. 

Not  only  did  this  pirate  chieftain  rule  Jamaica, 
but  the  island's  early  wealth  and  prosperity  were 
built  upon  the  business  of  piracy,  and  for  many 
years  Jamaica  was  notoriously  a  rendezvous,  a 
resort,  and  a  clearing  house  of  the  buccaneers. 
In  the  city  of  Port  Royal,  opposite  the  present 
capital  of  Kingston,  the  pirates,  freebooters,  and 


264  THE  WEST  INDIES 

"brethren  of  the  Main"  foregathered  from  far 
and  near. 

To  this  spot  they  brought  their  ill-gotten  treas- 
ures, chests  of  plate  and  golden  doubloons,  pieces  of 
eight  and  ingots  of  silver,  chalices  and  candlesticks 
of  gold  ablaze  with  jewels,  bales  of  silks  and  bolts 
of  velvets,  kegs  of  rum  and  casks  of  wine ;  the  loot  of 
many  a  ship  and  galleon,  the  sack  of  many  a  city 
and  town,  the  holy  altarpieces  of  many  a  dese- 
crated church,  jewels  wrenched  from  fingers  and 
arms  of  dismembered  living  women,  and  the  output 
of  many  a  mine,  until,  within  this  little  Jamaican 
town,  was  such  a  vast  accumulation  of  wealth 
that  Port  Royal  was  famed  as  the  richest  city 
the  world  had  ever  known. 

And  here  the  swaggering,  black-hearted  crew 
gambled  and  drank  and  caroused  away  the  riches 
they  had  won  at  cost  of  untold  misery  and  count- 
less human  lives;  here  debauchery,  licentiousness, 
and  every  form  of  vice  held  full  sway,  brazenly 
flaunting  its  shame,  proud  of  its  sin,  until  the 
name  of  Port  Royal  was  blazoned  throughout  the 
world  as  all  that  stood  for  depravity  and  vicious- 
ness — the  wickedest  city  that  ever  disgraced  this 
fair  earth. 

And  then,  as  though  an  outraged  God  could  no 
longer  permit  this  blot  upon  the  universe,  the  city 
was  wiped  off  the  map  in  an  instant,  when,  on 
June  7,  1692,  an  earthquake  shook  Jamaica  to  its 


JAMAICA  265 

foundations,  and  Port  Royal,  with  three  thou- 
sand of  its  houses,  most  of  its  people,  and  all  its 
treasures,  slipped  bodily  into  the  sea. 

To-day,  when  the  water  is  calm,  the  coral- 
encrusted  ruins  of  the  old  pirate  town  may  be  seen 
beneath  the  sea  as  one  sails  over  the  bay,  and  the 
negro  boatmen  tell  weird  tales  of  spectral  ships 
sailing  into  the  teeth  of  the  wind — riding  the  crest 
of  storms,  ever  striving  to  make  the  lost  port, 
while,  from  beneath  the  tempest-tossed  waves, 
the  phantom  bells  of  the  cathedral  toll  the  requiem 
for  the  dead. 

Across  the  bay  from  Port  Royal  stands  the  capi- 
tal of  Jamaica,  Kingston,  a  city  whose  foundations 
were  laid  by  the  survivors  of  Port  Royal  and 
which,  in  1907,  suffered  nearly  as  much  as  did  its 
wicked  predecessor  two  centuries  before.  Leveled 
by  the  awful  earthquake,  swept  with  the  con- 
flagration which  followed,  Kingston  was  scarce 
more  than  a  mass  of  smoldering  ruins — a  waste  of 
broken  stone  and  dust,  a  heap  of  debris,  after  the 
catastrophe  of  nine  years  ago;  but  the  town  has 
rapidly  recovered,  it  has  been  rebuilt,  and  until 
another  tremor  levels  it  again,  it  will  continue 
as  busy,  prosperous,  and  important  as  before. 

Beautiful  indeed  are  Kingston  and  its  harbor  as 
the  ship  passes  the  sandy  palisadoes,  with  the  cocoa- 
palms  rising  like  pillars  of  a  colonnade  above  this 
golden  strip  of  shore  that  connects  Port  Royal 


266  THE  WEST  INDIES 

with  the  mainland.  At  the  foot  of  a  sloping  plain 
of  green,  with  its  feet  in  the  sea,  is  the  city,  set  in 
an  amphitheater  of  hills  behind  which  rise  the 
hyacinthine  mountains — a  mighty  rampart  against 
the  sky;  but  its  charms  are  those  of  the  tropic 
flowers  which  lure  insects  to  their  death,  a  fatal 
beauty,  for  under  the  fair  green  plain  and  the 
peaceful  verdured  land  lurks  the  sleeping  ogre  of 
destruction,  the  ever-present  menace  of  a  cata- 
clysm such  as  has  devastated  the  island  on  two 
occasions  in  the  past. 

A  city  of  some  fifty  thousand  inhabitants, 
Kingston  is  the  second  wealthiest  and  important 
city  in  the  West  Indies.  It  is  regularly  laid  out, 
with  its  streets  running  at  right  angles,  and  is  clean 
and  well  kept,  with  numerous  splendid  steel  and 
concrete  buildings  erected  since  the  earthquake, 
but  it  possesses  nothing  in  the  way  of  interesting 
ruins  of  past  grandeur,  no  massive  structures 
eloquent  of  a  fascinating,  romantic  youth.  Even 
before  the  earthquake,  there  was  little  of  historic 
interest  in  the  town,  and  the  few  notable  old  land- 
marks were  mostly  ruined  or  destroyed  and  have 
been  rebuilt  or  remodeled.  Among  the  most 
noteworthy  of  these  was  the  old  parish  church, 
built  soon  after  the  destruction  of  Port  Royal,  and 
within  which  were  preserved  the  ragged  battle 
flags  borne  by  Britain's  triumphant  warships  in 
olden  days.  Near  the  altar  was  a  black  marble 


JAMAICA  267 

slab,  marking  the  grave  of  Admiral  Benbow, 
while  many  other  notable  monuments  and  ceno- 
taphs were  to  be  seen.  The  ancient  church  sur- 
vived the  shock,  but  its  tower  was  rent  apart,  its 
steeple  was  left  standing  drunkenly  awry,  the 
interior  was  wrecked,  and  tons  of  debris  covered 
the  resting  place  of  the  old  admiral.  Fortunately, 
the  priceless  collections  of  specimens,  the  unique 
relics,  the  immense  library,  and  the  many  art 
treasures  in  the  Institute  of  Jamaica  on  East 
Street  were  saved,  although  somewhat  damaged. 
Here  may  be  seen  the  old  bell  from  Port  Royal, 
which  once  hung  in  the  church  built  by  contri- 
butions from  pirates,  among  them  Morgan  him- 
self— a  quaint  conceit  quite  in  keeping  with  the 
curiously  warped  and  twisted  point  of  view  of  the 
buccaneers.  Here  also  are  the  famous  "Shark 
Papers,"  the  papers  of  an  American  privateer 
which  were  tossed  overboard  by  the  skipper  when 
chased  by  a  British  cruiser,  and  which  bobbed  up 
at  a  most  inopportune  moment,  being  brought  into 
port  by  another  British  officer  who  had  found  them 
in  the  stomach  of  a  shark  captured  off  Haiti. 
Solely  upon  the  evidence  of  these  marvelously 
recovered  documents  the  unfortunate  captain 
and  his  crew  were  convicted. 

Aside  from  such  curious  and  interesting  objects 
there  is  little  to  attract  the  stranger  in  Kings- 
ton, but,  uninteresting  as  is  the  city,  so  far  as 


268  THE  WEST  INDIES 

quaintness,  antiquity  or  historical  associations  are 
concerned,  yet  its  modernity,  its  up-to-date  con- 
veniences, and  its  excellent  accommodations  for 
visitors,  place  it  far  in  advance  of  most  West 
Indian  capitals. 

But  Jamaica's  attractions,  its  advantages  and  its 
fascination  are  in  the  island  itself,  and  not  in  its 
capital,  and  few  visitors  remain  in  Kingston  save 
for  a  short  stay  or  through  necessity,  for  it  is 
undeniably  hot,  while,  in  the  suburbs  and  the 
hills,  within  easy  reach  of  the  town,  one  may  find 
fresh,  cool,  healthy  air  and  charming  rural  sur- 
roundings, delightfully  quiet,  restful,  and  beautiful. 

Such  a  spot  is  Spanish  Town,  northwest  of 
Kingston,  and  which  for  over  three  centuries  was 
the  capital  of  the  island.  Founded  in  1520  by  the 
Spaniards,  who  called  it  Santiago  de  la  Vega, 
this  city  of  the  Dons  was  renamed  Spanish  Town 
by  the  British,  who  no  doubt  found  the  long 
euphonious  Castilian  appellation  a  stumbling-block 
for  Anglo-Saxon  tongues.  Save  for  its  name 
there  is  no  hint  of  Spanish  dominion  in  the  town 
to-day,  and  one  looks  in  vain  for  vine-grown  bas- 
tions, crumbling  embrasured  walls,  massive  build- 
ings with  arched  portals  leading  to  shady  patios,  or 
iron-grilled,  jutting  balconies.  Instead,  there  are 
white-painted,  green-shuttered  villas  in  charming 
gardens  and  clean  bright  streets.  Spanish  Town 
of  to-day  is  a  quiet,  sleepy  little  village,  lolling 


JAMAICA  269 

upon  the  sunny  land  beside  the  Rio  Cobre,  and 
seemingly  enjoying  the  delightful  occupation  of 
doing  absolutely  nothing,  quite  as  much  as  the 
languid  colored  folk  who  doze  at  the  doorways 
of  their  little  huts. 

In  the  center  of  the  town,  quite  after  the  style 
of  every  self-respecting  Spanish  city,  is  a  little  plaza 
containing  a  market-place  and  a  prim  little  garden 
within  an  iron  railing,  and  surrounded  by  the  larger 
and  more  important  buildings  of  the  one-time 
capital.  On  one  side  is  the  House  of  Assembly, 
and  across  the  way  is  King's  House,  a  colonial, 
mansion-like  structure  of  red  brick  with  white 
painted  pillars  supporting  a  heavy  portico.  Here 
also  is  the  Rodney  monument,  an  octagonal  Greek 
temple,  flanked  by  a  colonnade  of  Ionic  columns 
and  containing  a  statue  of  the  famous  British 
admiral  who  won  the  memorable  victory  over 
De  Grasse,  off  Dominica,  and  established  British 
supremacy  in  the  Caribbean  for  all  time.  The 
statue,  made  by  Bacon,  and  by  some  considered 
a  masterpiece,  represents  England's  naval  hero 
bareheaded,  naked  to  the  waist,  and  clad  only 
in  toga  and  kilt  and  with  one  hand  resting  upon 
a  shield  and  sword.  No  doubt  the  sculptor  in- 
tended to  make  the  figure  heroic  in  this  classic 
pose,  but  somehow  the  unmistakably  British 
features  of  the  doughty  old  sea-dog  fail  to  lend 
themselves  to  the  part  and  the  admiral  appears  far 


270  THE  WEST  INDIES 

more  as  if  emerging  from  a  Turkish  bath,  with  a 
towel  about  his  middle,  than  like  a  noble  Roman. 

In  the  suburbs  of  the  town  stands  the  oldest 
church  on  the  island  and  the  sole  remaining  relic 
of  Spanish  days  in  the  neighborhood.  This  is  the 
English  Cathedral,  built  by  the  Spaniards,  a 
structure  of  faded  pink  brick  with  a  white  wooden 
steeple  and  which  is  literally  floored  with  tomb- 
stones. Here  rest  the  bones  of  many  of  the  most 
famous  and  aristocratic  personages  of  Jamaica's 
early  British  days,  and  whose  lives  and  virtues  are 
extolled  in  verse  and  prose  on  scores  of  tablets  and 
monuments.  Some  of  these  are  exquisite  works 
of  art  by  Bacon,  others  are  elaborate  with  coats-of- 
arms  and  classic  designs,  while  some  of  the  epi- 
taphs are  very  quaint  and  amusing,  as  for  example, 
one  above  the  grave  of  an  officer  who  came  over 
with  Penn  and  Venables  and  who  "died  amid 
great'applause, "  if  we  are  to  believe  the  inscription. 

Both  the  old  church  and  Rodney's  monument, 
as  well  as  the  other  old  buildings,  were  seriously 
injured  in  the  earthquake  of  1907,  for  the  town 
was  badly  shaken  and  many  residences  were 
destroyed,  but  the  total  damage  was  very  light 
as  compared  with  that  in  Kingston. 

As  Spanish  Town  possesses  an  excellent  hotel, 
a  protracted  stay  may  be  made  here  and  much  of 
beauty  and  interest  may  be  seen  in  the  neighbor- 
hood. Among  the  attractive  spots  in  the  vicinity 


JAMAICA  271 

is  the  famous  Bog  Walk,  one  of  the  most  pictur- 
esque and  beautiful  bits  of  Jamaica.  On  the  way 
from  Spanish  Town  to  the  Bog  Walk  one  sees 
the  dam  and  power  plant  of  the  West  Indies 
Electric  Company  which  furnishes  the  power  for 
the  street  railways  of  the  capital.  While  the 
utility  and  necessity  of  the  plant  are  unquestion- 
able, it  is  regrettable  that  the  fascinating  beauty 
of  the  lovely  Rio  Cobre  should  be  ruined  by  this 
unlovely  work  of  man.  As  someone  has  most 
happily  expressed  it,  the  Rio  Cobre  is  the  most 
praised  and  most  damned  stream  in  Jamaica! 

Six  miles  from  Bog  Walk  station  is  the  remark- 
able natural  bridge  across  the  Rio  de  Oro,  where 
the  sides  of  the  deep  canon,  through  which  the 
stream  has  hewn  its  course,  meet  in  an  arch 
capped  by  a  single  stupendous  slab  of  rock  sixty 
feet  above  the  river. 

Also  within  easy  reach  of  Spanish  Town,  about 
ten  miles  distant,  is  Old  Harbor  Bay,  the  spot 
where  the  Spanish,  under  Esquivel,  first  landed 
on  the  island.  Here  stands  the  ancient  Tama- 
rind Tree  Church  which  tradition  claims  was 
erected  by  order  of  Diego  Columbus  and  which, 
if  true,  would  make  this  church  the  oldest  and  most 
interesting  relic  of  Spanish  dominion  in  Jamaica. 

Even  nearer  the  capital  than  Spanish  Town  are 
many  delightful  places  where  the  visitor  may 
tarry.  A  trolley  from  Kingston  passes  through 


272  THE  WEST  INDIES 

the  valley  to  Half- Way-Tree,  three  miles  from  the 
town,  and  along  the  route  are  residences  of  many 
of  the  well-to-do  of  Kingston  who  dwell  in  this 
delightful  suburban  district.  Half-Way-Tree  is 
so  called  as  it  is  half  way  to  the  Constant  Spring 
Hotel  at  the  foot  of  the  Blue  Mountains,  and 
nearly  six  hundred  feet  above  the  sea.  Two  miles 
beyond  Half-Way-Tree  is  King's  House,  the 
residence  of  the  Governor-General,  a  splendid 
mansion  amid  magnificent  grounds  and  with  a 
ballroom  costing  $25,000.  The  earthquake  played 
havoc  with  King's  House,  the  only  habitable  por- 
tion remaining  after  the  shock  being  the  bungalow 
occupied  by  the  Governor's  secretary,  but  like  the 
other  ruined  government  buildings  it  was  rebuilt 
better  than  before. 

Also  within  easy  reach  of  Kingston  by  trolley  or 
motor  car  are  the  Hope  and  Castleton  Gardens;  the 
former  about  five  miles  from  the  city  and  seven 
hundred  feet  above  the  sea.  This  magnificent 
botanic  or  agricultural  station  covers  220  acres 
and  affords  a  wonderful  opportunity  to  study 
the  great  variety  of  native,  as  well  as  introduced, 
plants,  flowers,  and  trees,  especially  those  of 
industrial  or  economic  value. 

Castleton  Gardens  are  farther  away,  some  nine- 
teen miles  from  Kingston,  and  a  carriage  or  motor 
car  must  be  hired  for  the  trip.  The  start  should 
preferably  be  made  early  in  the  day,  for  the  first 


JAMAICA  273 

few  miles  of  road  are  very  hot  and  dusty,  but  very 
soon  the  shade  of  the  forest  is  reached  and,  as 
the  highway  climbs  upward,  the  air  becomes  cool 
and  refreshing.  Castleton  is  nearly  five  hundred 
feet  above  the  sea  and  was  established  nearly 
sixty  years  ago.  Not  only  are  the  gardens  wonder- 
fully interesting  for  the  wealth  and  variety  of  their 
vegetation,  but  there  are  arbors,  benches,  and 
bathing  pools  on  the  grounds,  and  near  at  hand 
are  an  excellent  hotel  and  dining-room,  as  well 
as  numerous  charming  cottages  which  may  be 
rented. 

Still  another  short  trip  from  Kingston  is  that  to 
Gordon  Town,  nine  miles  distant,  and  nearly  one 
thousand  feet  above  sea  level.  The  road  winds  for 
miles  along  the  banks  of  the  Hope  River,  a  tum- 
bling stream  flowing  through  picturesque  scenery, 
with  tropic  foliage  covering  the  hillsides  and  flow- 
ing over  to  submerge  the  valleys  and  ravines  with  a 
flood  of  green,  while  flowering  vines  clamber  over 
roadside  rocks  and  bushes,  and  giant  creepers  hang 
in  mile-long  festoons  over  the  verges  of  the  mighty 
cliffs.  Gordon  Town  is  but  a  village,  a  country 
resort  of  cottages,  and  a  favorite  residential  spot 
for  many  of  Kingston's  business  men.  There 
are  accommodations  here  for  the  stranger,  and 
one  may  pass  a  most  enjoyable  time,  rambling 
through  the  hills  covered  with  their  coffee  and 
cacao  groves,  climbing  the  heights, "or  making  short 


274  THE  WEST  INDIES 

excursions  to  neighboring  places  of  wonderful 
scenic  beauty. 

A  visit  to  Newcastle,  nearly  four  thousand  feet 
above  the  sea,  affords  an  excellent  idea  of  the 
glorious  mountain  scenery  of  Jamaica  and  the  cool 
temperate  zone  of  the  high  altitudes,  where  north- 
ern flowers,  fruits,  and  vegetables  grow  luxuriantly 
about  the  quarters  of  the  officers  at  the  great 
military  barracks.  Wonderful  feats  of  engineer- 
ing were  displayed  in  building  the  splendid  road 
to  this  lofty  site  and  from  which  one  may  look 
forth  upon  a  scene  beautiful  and  sublime  beyond 
description.  Kingston,  on  its  plain  at  the  borders 
of  the  harbor,  seems  almost  underfoot;  beyond  is 
the  slender  sickle-like  strip  of  gold  and  green,  the 
palisadoes,  tipped  by  Port  Royal, — like  a  pendant 
gem  at  the  end  of  a  jeweled  chain,  while  east  and 
west  the  shore  line  stretches  for  a  hundred  miles 
in  jutting  capes,  deep  crescent  coves,  and  rocky 
headlands  rimmed  with  a  silver  thread  of  surf. 

Even  farther  towards  the  sky  one  may  ascend, 
until  the  very  summit  of  the  range  is  reached  at 
Saint  Catherine's  Peak,  a  mile  above  the  vast  blue 
Caribbean  outspread  for  countless  leagues  to  where 
it  meets  the  arching  dome  of  sky. 

But  if  one  desires  mountain  heights,  awe-inspir- 
ing scenery,  marvelous  views,  and  does  not  mind 
roughing  it  a  bit,  the  ascent  of  the  Blue  Mountain 
Peak  should  certainly  be  made,  for  this  is  the  high- 


JAMAICA  275 

est  peak  in  Jamaica  and  the  loftiest  mountain 
available  for  ordinary  mortals  in  the  West  Indies, 
a  cloud-wrapped  summit  7338  feet  above  the  sea. 
Here,  in  the  drifting  mist  of  the  wind-swept  roof 
of  the  island,  one  has  half  of  Jamaica  at  one's  feet ; 
a  map  of  a  thousand  shades  of  green,  cut  with 
vast  black  gorges,  flecked  with  purple  shadows, 
dappled  with  plantations,  orchards,  fields,  and 
cultivated  lands,  threaded  by  silver  streams  and 
winding  roads  and  ringed  about  by  a  sea  of  spar- 
kling blue.  Then,  as  a  cloud  swirls  softly  and 
silently  about  the  mountain  peaks,  the  world  below 
is  veiled  from  sight,  and  far  and  near  eddies  and 
rolls  a  boundless  sea  of  white,  a  billowy  waste  of 
mist,  above  which  solitary,  alone,  cut  off  from  all 
the  universe,  is  the  tiny  bit  of  rock  on  which 
one  stands.  Again  the  scene  changes,  and  beneath 
the  tossing  waves  of  vapor  the  lightning  flashes 
and  the  thunder  peals,  the  phantasmal  sea  is  riven 
asunder,  and  from  the  gray  waste  rise  rock-ribbed 
mountain  heights  and  wet  green  hilltops.  Thus, 
one  feels,  must  the  new-born  world  have  seemed, 
when,  from  the  nebulous  universe,  the  land  took 
form;  thus  must  Noah  have  felt,  as  he  looked 
forth  from  his  ark  upon  the  top  of  Ararat ;  and  one 
half  expects  to  see  great  uncouth  monsters  stranded 
upon  the  jutting  slopes,  huge,  slimy,  writhing 
forms  left  by  the  receding  flood,  until,  with  a 
sudden  burst  of  light,  the  wide  fair  land  leaps 


276  THE  WEST  INDIES 

into  view  and  shreds  of  vapor,  clinging  to  the 
forest  tops,  alone  remain  of  the  vast,  spectral, 
vanished  sea. 

Here,  upon  this  sky-piercing  summit,  the  Jamai- 
can government  maintains  a  hut  for  the  benefit 
of  those  who  desire  to  spend  a  night  above  the 
clouds;  but  the  accommodations  are  of  the  most 
primitive  description,  and  it  is  wiser  to  descend 
to  one  of  the  stopping  places  at  a  lower  level,  such 
as  Whitfield  Hall,  a  well-built  comfortable  house 
four  thousand  feet  above  the  sea  and  built  over 
two  hundred  years  ago.  Strange  as  it  may  seem, 
the  man  who  built  this  house  was  named  Heaven,  a 
most  appropriate  name  for  one  residing  among 
the  clouds,  and  members  of  the  Heaven  family 
still  dwell  (or  did  until  recently)  in  this  truly 
Heavenly  homestead. 

Among  the  greatest  of  Jamaica's  advantages 
is  the  accessibility  of  all  parts  of  the  island.  The 
government  railway  traverses  the  island  from 
north  to  south  and  almost  from  end  to  end,  connect- 
ing Kingston  with  Montego  Bay  and  with  branch 
lines  from  Spanish  Town  to  Port  Antonio,  from 
Bog  Walk  to  Ewarton,  and  from  May  Pen  to 
Chapelton,  while  two  thousand  miles  of  perfect 
automobile  roads  reach  every  town  and  village, 
and  coastwise  steamers  ply  between  the  various 
ports. 

To  describe  in   detail  the  innumerable  drives 


JAMAICA  277 

and  rides,  the  marvelously  beautiful  scenery,  the 
fascinating  towns,  the  mountain  resorts,  the 
natural  wonders,  and  the  manifold  attractions  and 
interesting  spots  in  Jamaica,  would  require  a  mas- 
sive volume;  but  a  brief  description  of  the  more 
important  towns  and  scenes  and  the  principal 
railway  trips  will  serve  to  give  the  prospective 
visitor  some  idea  of  what  this  glorious  island 
offers. 

The  most  attractive  line  is,  perhaps,  that  from 
Kingston  to  Port  Antonio,  seventy-five  miles 
distant.  For  the  first  few  miles  the  way  leads 
through  low-lying  mangrove  swamps  and  then 
enters  the  fertile  banana-covered  plain  of  St. 
Catherine, — a  country  made  productive  by  irri- 
gation,— and  from  Gregory  Park,  the  first  stop, 
to  Spanish  Town,  nothing  but  a  vast  billowy  sea 
of  banner-like  leaves  can  be  seen. 

Beyond  Spanish  Town,  the  level  lands  are  left 
behind  and  the  train  enters  the  hills  through  rock- 
walled  cuts,  and  with  sharp,  jagged  peaks  rising 
against  the  sky  on  every  hand.  Skirting  the  steep 
slopes  the  train  dashes  through  two  tunnels, 
swings  round  a  gorge,  and  enters  a  tunnel  half  a 
mile  in  length,  to  emerge  upon  a  sunshine-flooded 
scene  of  wonderful  beauty.  Below  the  tracks 
flows  the  dark  blue  Rio  Cobre,  beyond  its  ver- 
dured  banks  rise  the  green  walls  of  the  deep  gorge, 
and  in  the  background  tower  the  lofty,  forest-clad 


278  THE  WEST  INDIES 

mountains  in  range  after  range  of  blue  slopes  and 
sun-bright  crests. 

Leaving  Bog  Walk,  where  a  short  branch  line 
extends  to  Ewarton  nine  miles  away,  the  train 
sweeps  into  a  rolling,  hilly  district,  luxuriantly  rich 
with  riotous  vegetation  and  countless  bananas, 
until  Riversdale  is  reached.  Here  begin  the 
engineering  feats  which  fill  the  traveler  with 
admiration,  as,  turning  and  twisting,  roaring  in 
and  out  of  tunnels,  skirting  precipices  and  creeping 
around  horseshoe  curves,  the  train  threads  its 
way  through  the  mountains ;  the  puffing  locomotive 
one  moment  above  one's  head  upon  the  hillside, 
the  next,  below  the  windows  of  the  car,  and  seem- 
ingly chasing  its  tail  like  a  playful  kitten. 

Passing  Troja  and  Richmond,  the  train  enters 
the  most  important  banana-growing  section  of  the 
island,  the  Parish  of  St.  Mary,  and  as  far  as  eye 
can  see  there  is  no  break  in  the  smooth  green 
sweep  of  tossing  leaves,  save  where  a  few  fruit 
trees  grow  about  the  negroes'  huts,  their  foliage 
rising,  like  deep-green  islands,  above  the  wind- 
swept ocean  of  pale  green. 

Steadily  up  the  steep  grade  the  train  mounts  to 
Highgate,  and  then  slips  gaily  down  to  Albany, 
while  all  about,  the  impossible  slopes  of  the  hills 
are  thick  with  bananas  growing  in  spots  so  precipi- 
tous that  one  marvels  that  they  can  bear  their 
bunches  of  fruit  without  toppling  over  to  the  plain 


JAMAICA  279 

beneath.  Here  and  there,  thin  wire  ropes  are 
seen,  swinging  in  graceful  curves  from  the  hilltops 
to  the  lowland,  and  down  these  cobweb-like 
strands  great  bunches  of  bananas  come  rushing 
through  the  air  to  be  loaded  into  the  waiting 
trains  upon  a  siding. 

Presently,  rounding  a  wooded  hillside,  the 
valley  of  Wag  Water  comes  into  view,  a  lovely 
scene  of  open,  fertile,  cultivated  lands  hemmed 
in  by  softly  shaded  blue  and  purple  mountains. 
Over  a  great  iron  bridge  that  spans  the  tiny 
stream  winding  through  its  wide  and  sandy  bed — 
but  which  in  a  few  hours  may  become  a  raging, 
irresistible  torrent — the  train  continues  on  its 
way  and  enters  the  straggling  seaside  town  of 
Anotto  Bay. 

From  here,  the  line  skirts  the  shore,  revealing 
glorious  vistas  of  plume-crowned  palms,  in  endless 
rows  above  the  creamy  beach,  and  with  the  long 
line  of  snowy  surf  and  sparkling  turquoise  sea 
beyond.  Buff  Bay,  Orange  Bay,  and  Hope  Bay 
are  passed  in  turn;  Spanish  River  is  crossed,  and 
rushing  through  St.  Margaret's  Bay,  the  train 
pulls  into  Port  Antonio. 

Port  Antonio,  the  chief  port  on  Jamaica's 
northern  coast,  and  second  only  to  Kingston,  is 
the  headquarters  of  the  vast  banana  industry  of 
the  island  and  the  shipping  port  for  countless 
millions  of  bunches  of  the  fruit  which  has  made 


280  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Jamaica's  prosperity — not  to  mention  the  few 
odd  million  cocoanuts  and  oranges  which  are  also 
shipped  from  here.  From  a  humble  beginning, 
when  a  schooner  load  of  bananas  was  sent  from 
San  Antonio  to  the  States,  this  industry  has 
grown,  until  to-day  Jamaica  leads  all  the  world 
in  its  banana  shipments ;  a  business  of  stupendous 
proportions  developed  from  nothing  in  less  than 
fifty  years. 

Situated  upon  a  narrow,  hog-backed  peninsula 
between  two  lovely  harbors,  Port  Antonio  is  a 
beautiful  and  picturesque  spot,  with  red-roofed, 
green-shuttered  houses  half-hidden  amid  palms 
and  verdure  and  backed  by  hills  rising  gradually 
to  the  distant  mountains.  Most  prominent  of  all 
things  in  the  port  is  the  great  hotel,  a  palatial 
hostelry  that  appears  as  if  transported  bodily 
from  Sag  Harbor  or  some  fashionable  New  Eng- 
land shore  resort  and  dropped  down  amid  palms 
and  tropic  foliage. 

To  those  who  feel  lost  and  ill  at  ease  unless 
surrounded  by  every  luxury,  comfort,  and  formal 
convention  of  fashionable  hotel  life,  Port  Antonio 
will  appeal  more  strongly  than  any  other  spot  in 
Jamaica.  But  those  who  seek  the  out-of-the-way 
corners,  the  quaintness  and  the  charm  of  dreamy 
tropic  lands,  freedom,  and  change  from  our  every- 
day life,  and  those  who  delight  in  getting  away 
from  the  beaten  track,  will  find  few  attractions  in 


JAMAICA  281 

Port  Antonio  with  its  huge  hotel,  stiff  artificiality, 
idle  chatter,  tango  parties,  trivialities,  and  other 
accessories  of  a  fashionable  watering  place.  But 
there  are  numerous  quiet,  unpretentious  hotels 
and  boarding  places  in  the  town,  and  it  cannot  be 
denied  that  the  climate  is  really  delightful,  the 
bathing  excellent,  the  scenery  superb,  and  much 
can  be  forgiven  and  overlooked  when  such  a  rare 
combination  is  found. 

From  Port  Antonio,  also,  one  may  take  many 
excursions  of  interest,  such  as  to  Don  Christopher's 
Cove  near  Anotto  Bay,  where  Columbus  beached 
his  caravels  in  1504  and  remained  a  castaway 
upon  his  own  ships  for  a  whole  year.  A  charm- 
ingly pretty  spot  is  the  cove,  with  lovely  bathing 
beaches  and  limpid  transparent  water,  but  it  is 
doubtful  if  the  marooned  admiral  and  his  grum- 
bling crews  admired  the  beauties  of  Nature  so 
lavishly  spread  about  them. 

Threatened  by  mutiny  and  faced  with  famine, 
Columbus  and  his  comrades  had  a  hard  time  of  it, 
until  the  shrewd  Don  Christopher  succeeded 
in  frightening  the  Indians  into  bringing  provisions, 
by  his  famous  trick  of  predicting  the  eclipse  of  the 
moon. 

Another  trip  worth  while  is  that  to  Golden  Vale 
and  Moore  Town,  the  latter  the  home  of  the 
remnants  of  the  once  dreaded  and  powerful 
Maroons.  Descendants  of  runaway  slaves,  the 


282  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Maroons  for  years  defied  the  armies  of  Jamaica 
and  England,  and  murdered,  pillaged,  and  burned 
at  will,  until  a  treaty  was  made  by  which  they  were 
granted  freedom  and  were  given  2500  acres  of  land. 
Although  mainly  of  African  blood,  yet  the  Maroons 
consider  themselves  a  race  apart  and  look  upon  the 
blacks  with  supreme  contempt.  In  fact,  during 
the  negro  insurrection  of  1865  they  proved  of  great 
service  in  tracking  down  and  killing  the  rebels. 
Once  savage,  warlike,  and  indomitable  fighters, 
the  Maroons  dwell  contentedly  in  their  thatched 
and  wattled  huts  at  Moore  Town,  at  peace  with 
the  world,  but  still  proud  of  the  bloody  history  and 
fighting  prowess  of  their  ancestors. 

Very  different  from  the  Port  Antonio  trip  is  the 
journey  to  Montego  Bay,  on  the  northwestern 
coast  of  Jamaica,  113  miles  from  Kingston. 

As  far  as  Spanish  Town,  the  same  route  is  fol- 
lowed as  before,  and  beyond  here,  to  May  Pen,  the 
train  runs  across  a  rolling  level  country  covered 
with  guinea  grass,  cane,  sisal,  and  cotton  and 
through  the  little  towns  of  Hartlands,  Bushy  Park, 
and  Old  Harbor.  Just  before  reaching  May  Pen 
the  train  rumbles  over  a  fine  iron  bridge,  and  the 
traveler  is  surprised  to  see  nothing  but  a  dry,  weed- 
grown,  empty  river  bed  without  a  sign  of  water. 
But  while  out  of  sight,  the  river  is  there,  flowing 
merrily  seaward  beneath  the  earth,  for,  like  many 
other  rivers  in  Jamaica,  this  Rio  Minho  has  the 


JAMAICA  283 

peculiar  characteristic  of  appearing  and  dis- 
appearing without  the  least  apparent  reason. 
Sinking  out  of  sight  it  flows  for  miles  through  sub- 
terranean caverns,  and  then  bobs  up  and  con- 
tinues on  its  way,  as  any  respectable  stream  should, 
and  as  if  tired  of  playing  hide-and-seek.  During 
heavy  rains,  however,  the  underground  channels 
are  inadequate  to  carry  off  the  excess  water,  and 
the  streams  rush  seaward  in  foaming  torrents 
upon  the  surface  as  well  as  under  it. 

From  May  Pen  to  Clarendon  Park  is  a  district 
of  fertile  plains,  fine  sugar  estates,  and  cattle  farms, 
while,  about  Clarendon  Park,  great  quantities  of 
fruit  are  raised,  and  the  train  is  besieged  by 
negresses  vending  oranges  and  pineapples,  custard- 
apples,  mangoes,  sapodillas,  and  other  luscious 
fruits  of  the  island.  Up  the  hills  through  immense 
orchards  of  oranges,  tangerines,  and  other  fruit  trees 
the  train  climbs  to  Williamsfield,  four  miles  from 
which  is  Mandeville,  a  popular  mountain  resort 
two  thousand  feet  above  the  sea,  and  with  a  splen- 
did hotel  and  great  golf  links,  in  a  temperate 
climate  of  perpetual  spring. 

Still  ascending,  the  road  passes  through  Kendal 
and  reaches  Green  Vale,  the  highest  point  on  the 
line,  at  an  elevation  of  1700  feet.  Here  is  the 
Pimento  district,  and  everywhere  upon  the  grassy 
open  lands  are  seen  the  handsome  white-barked 
trees  with  their  dark-green  leaves. 


284  THE  WEST  INDIES 

From  the  fruit  of  these  the  "allspice"  of  com- 
merce is  obtained,  the  trees  of  Jamaica  producing 
two  thirds  of  the  world's  supply.  From  Green 
Vale  the  train  glides  down-hill  to  the  rolling  low- 
lands, out  of  the  fruit  and  spice  districts,  and  into 
grassy  pastures,  banana  farms,  and  cane  fields 
to  Appleton.  Following  the  course  of  the  Black 
River  through  cool  and  dusky  glens,  past  sparkling 
cascades  and  tumbling  rapids,  the  train  winds  in 
and  out  and  comes  at  last  into  the  famous  Cockpit 
Country.  A  wild,  desolate  land  is  this,  a  weird, 
broken,  rugged  waste  of  precipitous  cliffs  and 
conical  limestone  peaks,  tumbled  about  hit  or  miss, 
separated  by  deep  ravines  and  narrow  canons, 
and^forest  clad.  Here  the  Maroons  held  their  own 
against  the  British  troops  in  days  gone  by,  and 
seeing  the  spot,  one  no  longer  marvels  at  the  feat, 
for  few  places  in  the  world  are  better  suited  to 
savage  guerrilla  warfare. 

Beyond  here  are  cultivated  lands,  more  of  the 
omnipresent  bananas,  of  which,  long  ere  this,  the 
traveler  will  be  heartily  tired,  and  one  breathes  a 
sigh  of  relief  as  the  broad  green  leaves  are  left 
behind,  and  at  Montpellier  one  sees  a  wide  and 
undulating  prairie,  broken  by  clumps  of  spreading 
trees,  while  in  the  shade,  or  grazing  on  the  thick 
green  grass,  are  hundreds  of  odd,  bluish,  hump- 
backed zebus  which  give  a  delightful  foreign  aspect 
to  the  landscape.  Then  come  the  sugar  lands  and 


JAMAICA  285 

cane  fields;  the  salt  tang  of  the  sea  is  in  the  air, 
and  swinging  swiftly  around  a  hillside,  the  land 
suddenly  drops  from  sight  and  one  looks  unex- 
pectedly upon  the  tranquil  waters  of  Montego  Bay, 
with  the  wooded  Bogue  Islands  sharply  silhouetted 
against  the  crimsoned  sunset  sky  and  shimmering 
purple  sea. 

Beautiful  in  its  location,  surrounded  by  scenery 
unexcelled  for  its  picturesque  variety  and  luxuri- 
ant verdure,  with  splendid  bathing  beaches  and  the 
lovely  outlying  islets,  Montego  Bay  is  unsurpassed 
in  its  attractions  and  advantages.  Moreover, 
there  are  excellent  hotels  and  boarding  places,  the 
train  service  to  Kingston  is  regular,  and  all  about 
are  delightful  drives  and  interesting  spots  to  visit. 

Here,  in  olden  days,  came  many  a  Spanish  ship 
from  Cuba  across  the  way,  and  here  the  Dons 
busied  themselves  in  killing  the  wild  hogs  that 
roamed  the  forests  about  and  from  which  they 
tried  out  the  fat  or  lard.  So  important  did  this 
industry  become  that  it  gave  the  name  to  the 
bay,  for  Montego  is  but  a  corruption  of  the  Span- 
ish "manteca,"  meaning  lard. 

There  are  many  interesting  and  beautiful  por- 
tions of  Jamaica  which  cannot  be  visited  by  rail- 
way, however;  but  all  of  these  are  easily  reached 
by  motor  car  or  carriage,  either  from  Kingston  or 
from  towns  on  the  railway  line.  In  fact,  Jamaica 
is  so  well  supplied  with  magnificent  highways  and 


286  THE  WEST  INDIES 

is  so  limited  in  area  that  one  may  tour  by  auto- 
mobile from  coast  to  coast  and  from  end  to  end 
of  the  island  and  see  every  important  and  interest- 
ing spot  in  a  comparatively  short  time. 

Among  the  many  interesting  and  attractive 
spots  within  reach  of  the  highways,  but  off  the 
railway  lines,  the  following  should  certainly  be 
visited : 

Fern  Gully,  nine  miles  from  Ocho  Rios — a 
great  ravine  literally  filled  to  overflowing  with 
myriads  of  ferns  of  every  imaginable  color,  form, 
and  size,  from  gigantic  tree-ferns  to  the  tiniest 
"filmies"  and  the  wonderful  gold  and  silver 
ferns. 

Judgment  Cliff,  two  miles  from  Easington, 
where  half  a  mountain  was  torn  away  by  the 
earthquake  of  1692,  and  which  fell  upon  and 
destroyed  the  estate  of  a  notorious  Dutchman, 
hence  the  name. 

The  Baths  of  St.  Thomas  the  Apostle,  near  the 
village  of  Bath,  forty  miles  from  Kingston,  and 
a  spot  whose  hot  medicinal  waters  have  been 
famous  for  centuries. 

Oracabessa  Bay,  six  miles  from  Port  Maria,  the 
place  where  Columbus  first  landed  in  Jamaica, 
on  May  5,  1494. 

Rio  Nuevo,  where  the  Spaniards  made  their  last 
stand  against  the  conquering  British  in  1658. 

St.  Ann's,  with  its  forests  of  pimento,  or  all- 


JAMAICA  287 

spice,  trees,  its  spice-laden  air,  its  rushing  streams, 
and  dashing  cataracts. 

Sevilla  del  Oro,  the  site  of  the  first  Spanish 
settlement  on  the  island. 

Dry  Harbor,  where  Columbus  repaired  his  leaky 
ships,  and  the  neighboring  enormous  caverns  at 
Cave  Hall  Pen  and  which  extend  for  miles  under 
ground  and  have  never  been  fully  explored. 

While,  of  all  Jamaica's  natural  wonders,  none  are 
more  worthy  of  a  visit  than  its  magnificent  water- 
falls, the  most  famous  of  which  is  Roaring  River 
Falls,  a  wonderful  cascade,  one  hundred  and  fifty 
feet  in  height  and  two  hundred  feet  in  width,  and 
which  is  so  surrounded  by  forest,  by  trees  and 
palms,  and  so  broken  up  by  jutting  rocks  clothed 
with  verdure,  that  it  appears  like  a  series  of  smaller 
falls,  a  myriad  of  cataracts  of  a  hundred  forms  and 
sizes — a  thousand  masses  of  feathery,  prismatic 
foam  and  countless  veils  of  shimmering  spray, 
tumbling,  dashing,  roaring  from  nowhere  into 
nowhere,  amid  a  tropic  jungle,  and  with  a  noise 
deafening  in  its  volume. 

Another  notable  cataract,  much  nearer  Kingston 
than  Roaring  River,  is  the  Cane  River  Fall  in  a 
deep  gorge  about  nine  miles  east  of  the  capital. 
Even  on  the  hottest  days  of  summer,  between  the 
precipitous  walls  of  the  ravine  it  is  deliciously 
cool,  the  cliffs  dripping  with  moisture,  draped  with 
ferns  and  flowering  vines,  and  hung  with  orchids. 


288  THE  WEST  INDIES 

At  the  head  of  this  magnificent  canon  the  mass 
of  silvery  water  falls  from  a  lofty  shelf  of  rock,  to 
plunge  into  a  great,  rocky,  fern-edged  bowl.  Here 
one  may  pass  behind  the  cataract  and  look  through 
the  opalescent  green  veil  of  falling  water,  and  here, 
behind  the  falls,  is  a  cavern,  once  the  lair  of  a 
famous  brigand  known  as  "Three-Fingered  Jack. " 
He  was  killed  by  a  Maroon  in  single-handed 
combat,  and  the  victor,  to  prove  his  triumph, 
brought  in  the  bandit's  hand  with  the  three 
digits.  For  his  services  in  ridding  the  community 
of  the  dreaded  outlaw,  the  Maroon  was  rewarded 
by  a  pension  of  $100  a  year  for  life.  Doubtless 
he  deeply  regretted  that  there  were  not  more 
three-fingered  brigands  to  conquer,  for  fighting 
was  the  favorite  occupation  of  the  Maroons,  and 
to  let  the  life  out  of  a  man  in  an  exciting  scrap 
must  have  seemed  a  very  easy  means  of  earning 
an  annuity. 


CHAPTER  XVII 

THE  BAHAMAS,   ISLANDS  OF  THE  PINK  PEARL 

MOST  northerly  of  the  true  West  Indies,  and 
nearest  to  our  shores,  are  the  Bahamas,  a  scattered 
group  of  three  thousand  islands,  cays,  and  reefs, 
and  extending  from  Great  Bahama,  off  Jupiter, 
Florida,  to  Grand  Turk,  off  the  coast  of  Santo 
Domingo — a  distance  of  over  seven  hundred 
miles. 

Low,  flat,  sandy,  and  barren,  of  so-called  "coral " 
limestone  and  only  semi-tropical  in  their  flora, 
the  Bahamas  are  lacking  in  scenic  beauties,  and  are 
monotonous  and  uninteresting  in  appearance. 
The  thin  soil  supports  a  certain  amount  of  vege- 
tation, but  nothing  luxuriantly  tropical;  the 
verdure  consisting  of  pitch-pine  groves,  scrubby 
palmettos,  tangled  thickets  of  thorny  scrub  and 
cactus,  with  the  shores  ringed  by  ragged  sea-grape 
and  sprawling  mangrove  trees. 

Although  the  first  spot  in  the  West  Indies  to  be 
discovered  by  Columbus  in  1492,  yet  the  Bahamas 
were  among  the  last  to  be  settled,  for  their  re- 
289 


290  THE  WEST  INDIES 

sources  are  most  meager,  and  even  to-day  many 
of  the  islands  are  uninhabited,  wild,  and  practically 
unknown,  save  to  the  negro  spongers,  fishermen, 
and  squatters  who  frequent  their  lagoons  and 
coves. 

With  the  highest  elevation  scarce  three  hun- 
dred feet  above  the  sea,  and  surrounded  by  thou- 
sands of  uncharted  reefs  and  rocks,  the  Bahamas 
have  proved  the  graveyard  of  countless  ships,  and 
for  many  years  were  the  resort  of  pirates  and 
buccaneers.  With  the  passing  of  these  pictur- 
esque gentry,  the  islands  became  the  headquarters 
of  a  less  courageous  and  more  degenerate  class  of 
freebooters — the  wreckers,  who  lured  vessels  to 
destruction  for  the  sake  of  loot,  or  contented  them- 
selves with  plundering  such  unfortunate  ships 
and  mariners  as  came  to  grief  upon  the  Bahaman 
reefs.  Although  piracy  is  an  occupation  long  dead 
and  wrecking  is  supposedly  a  thing  of  the  past  in 
the  West  Indies,  yet,  until  a  few  years  ago,  the 
Bahamans  were  not  averse  to  profiting  by  the  mis- 
fortunes of  others,  and  as  recently  as  1904  a 
number  of  wreckers  were  brought  to  Nassau  to 
stand  trial  for  wrecking  and  looting  a  yacht  on 
Rum  Cay. 

Following  the  piping  days  of  piracy  and  wreck- 
ing came  the  more  remunerative,  and  scarcely 
less  exciting,  industry  of  blockade-running,  and, 
during  our  Civil  War,  the  islands  waxed  prosper- 


THE  BAHAMAS  291 

ous  and  the  people  wealthy  through  this  lucrative, 
if  precarious,  business. 

But  the  most  important,  the  most  successful,  and 
the  most  praiseworthy  industry  of  the  Bahamans 
has  been  the  exploitation  of  their  capital  as  a 
winter  resort  for  Northerners. 

And  despite  thqir  lack  of  scefnic  attractions,  the 
monotony  of  their  landscapes,  and  their  dearth  of 
vegetation,  the  Bahamas  can  truthfully  claim 
attractions  which  place  the  islands  in  the  front 
rank  of  desirable  places  in  which  to  escape  the 
rigors  of  our  winters. 

Not  the  least  of  these  is  the  climate,  for  while 
mainly  outside  the  tropics,  yet  the  Bahamas  are 
ever  warm,  sunshiny,  and  balmy,  while  the  heat 
of  the  sun  is  tempered  by  the  ceaseless,  refreshing 
trade  winds.  Wonderfully  equable  is  the  tempera- 
ture, rarely  falling  below  70°  and  seldom  rising 
above  80°,  and,  day  in  and  day  out,  the  needle  of  the 
recording  thermometer  at  Nassau  draws  an  almost 
unwavering  line  along  its  chart. 

Moreover,  the  sea  bathing  is  delightful;  there  are 
excellent  fishing  and  boating;  splendid  roads  cover 
the  limited  area  of  New  Providence  and  there 
are  unexcelled  hotels,  every  improvement,  out- 
door sports  of  every  description,  and  all  the  com- 
forts, luxuries,  and  accessories  of  the  North,  not 
excepting  the  formal  social  functions,  the  ridicu- 
lous conventions  and  the  usual  inanities  and  gossip 


292  THE  WEST  INDIES 

without  which  fashionable  society  would  find  the 
most  delightful  spot  intolerable.  To  speak  of  the 
Bahamas  and  to  describe  them  is  really  to  write  of 
Nassau,  for  the  other  islands  are  rarely  visited, 
there  are  no  accommodations  for  strangers  upon 
them,  and  the  life,  entertainment,  business,  and 
allurements  of  the  Bahamas  all  center  in  the 
quaint  town  on  New  Providence,  145  miles 
from  Miami,  Florida. 

Upon  a  low  hill,  barely  one  hundred  feet  in 
height,  the  city  of  Nassau  reclines  drowsily  in  a 
glorious  bath  of  sunshine,  and  facing  the  north, 
as  if  its  only  interest  was  in  the  coming  of  more 
tourists  to  keep  it  from  falling  fast  asleep. 

Above  it  on  the  hilltop  stands  an  old  gray  fort ; 
at  either  end  of  the  ridge  stand  others,  and  between 
them  gleam  the  pink,  yellow,  and  white  houses 
with  their  silvery  gray  roofs,  above  which  wave  the 
nodding  palms. 

Wonderfully  pretty  is  the  scene,  but  the  great- 
est beauty,  the  most  ardent  color,  and  the  most 
striking  feature  of  Nassau  is  the  water  that 
stretches  from  the  creamy  sand  beaches  to  the 
foam-capped  outer  reefs. 

Vivid  emerald  in  the  shallows,  blotched  by  pur- 
ple above  the  reefs,  cobalt,  sapphire,  and  indigo 
in  the  shadows,  the  water  shimmers  with  every 
color  of  the  peacock's  tail  to  where  the  lavender 
horizon  joins  an  azure  sky. 


THE  BAHAMAS  293 

Above  this  wondrous  sea,  the  ship  seems  sus- 
pended in  mid-air  and,  looking  down  through  the 
crystalline,  transparent  liquid,  one  sees  the  wav- 
ing purple  sea-fans  and  multicolored  corals  upon 
the  distant  bottom.  And  in  and  out,  back  and 
forth  among  the  growths,  float  and  dart  fishes  of 
rainbow  hues — fish  of  silver  and  of  opal,  of  blue 
and  gold,  of  purple  and  carmine,  of  blazing  orange 
and  burnished  green ;  fishes  striped  with  black  and 
white,  mottled  with  a  score  of  tints,  piebald  and 
speckled;  a  veritable  riot  of  living  color,  unreal, 
impossible — a  prismatic  phantasy. 

Unlike  any  other  West  Indian  town  is  Nassau,  a 
plare  of  white  coral  streets,  of  huge  walls  enclosing 
gardens  of  gorgeous  foliage  and  flowers,  of  low 
pink  and  yellow  houses  capped  by  weathered 
shingled  roofs,  of  blazing  light  and  purple-black 
shadows,  and  of  indolent  negroes  in  picturesque 
rags. 

Sleepy,  languid,  almost  moribund  it  seems.  No 
one  hurries,  no  one  has  a  care  or  worry  in  the 
world;  it  is  a  lotus-eating  land,  despite  electric 
lights,  motor  cars,  excellent  shops,  and  great 
modern  hotels. 

There  are  few  notable  buildings  in  the  town, 
the  most  important — aside  from  the  hotels — being 
the  cathedral,  the  barracks  near  the  parade  ground 
on  Maryborough  Street,  the  public  library — 
formerly  a  prison — and  the  post  office,  council 


294  THE  WEST  INDIES 

chambers,  treasury,  court  house,  and  other  govern- 
ment buildings  about  the  square. 

In  the  square  is  the  famous  ceiba  or  silk-cotton 
tree,  one  of  Nassau's  "wonders,"  but  which,  in 
any  of  the  more  southerly  West  Indies,  would  be 
passed  by  without  notice.  The  Sponge  Exchange 
and  the  Fish  Market  are  also  points  of  interest, 
provided  the  visitor  does  not  possess  a  delicate 
nose. 

At  the  head  of  George  Street,  on  Mount  Fitz- 
william,  stands  Government  House,  surrounded 
by  eighteen  acres  of  beautiful  grounds  and  afford- 
ing a  magnificent  view.  Here,  too,  is  the  statue 
of  Columbus,  modeled  after  Washington  Irving's 
own  ideas  and  suggestions.  Luckily  the  monu- 
ment is  labeled,  as  otherwise  one  might  well 
mistake  it  for  a  statue  of  some  swaggering,  swash- 
buckling character  of  Nassau's  past,  for,  to  tell  the 
truth,  the  slouch-hatted  figure  with  toga  over 
shoulder  looks  more  like  a  pirate  than  like  the 
discoverer  of  America. 

Most  interesting  of  the  "sights"  about  Nassau 
are  the  old  forts  upon  the  hill.  Fort  Fincastle,  as 
the  central  fort  is  called,  is  a  quaint  structure 
resembling  nothing  so  much  as  a  petrified  paddle- 
wheel  steamboat.  It  was  built  in  1789  and  is  now 
used  as  a  signal  station,  and  from  its  walls  one 
may  obtain  a  splendid  view.  But  it  is  most 
famous  for  the  so-called  "Queen's  Staircase,"  by 


THE  BAHAMAS  295 

which  it  is  approached — a  narrow  passageway, 
seventy  feet  in  depth  and  thirty  feet  in  width, 
and  cut  through  the  solid  limestone  rock. 

The  other  forts,  Fort  Montague  and  Fort 
Charlotte,  were  built  respectively  in  1741  and 
1788.  A  splendid  view  may  be  obtained  from 
either,  but  Charlotte  is  the  more  interesting,  as 
it  contains  many  subterranean  dungeons  and 
passageways,  some  of  which  are  reputed  to  extend 
underground  to  Government  House. 

With  its  three  commanding  forts  overlooking 
the  town  and  harbor,  one  would  think  that  Nassau 
would  have  been  impregnable  in  olden  times;  but 
it  has  been  attacked  and  taken  on  several  occasions. 

Fort  Montague  was  captured  by  the  embryonic 
American  navy  in  1776,  and  was  again  taken  by 
the  Spaniards  in  1781.  The  Dons  were  driven  out 
by  Loyalists  from  North  Carolina  in  1783,  the  vic- 
tory being  brought  about  by  strategy  on  the  part  of 
Colonel  Devaux.  By  sending  his  boats  ashore 
filled  with  men  who  secreted  themselves  on  their 
return  to  the  ships,  and  repeating  the  ruse  a 
number  of  times,  the  Spaniards  were  led  to  believe 
that  a  large  force  had  been  landed,  and  after  a 
short  parley  surrendered  the  fortress  without  a 
struggle. 

Outside  of  Nassau,  there  are  perfect  roads 
traversing  the  entire  island  of  New  Providence, 
which  is  about  twenty-seven  miles  in  length  and 


296  THE  WEST  INDIES 

from  three  to  seven  miles  in  width.  The  scenery, 
however,  is  far  from  attractive  and  consists  mainly 
of  a  waste  of  pitch-pines  and  untidy  palmettos, 
dotted  with  shallow  ponds  and  practically  flat, 
save  for  the  "Blue  Hills"  which  rise  to  a  height 
of  120  feet. 

At  Waterloo,  however,  there  is  a  sight  worth 
seeing,  the  "Lake  of  Fire,"  an  artificial  pond 
some  three  hundred  feet  wide  and  about  one 
thousand  feet  long  which  is  connected  with  the 
sea  by  a  canal  closed  by  a  gate.  After  dark, 
the  pond  glows  and  gleams  with  phosphorescence 
in  a  marvelous  manner,  the  boats  upon  its  surface 
leaving  a  wake  of  glowing  fire,  while  the  water, 
dripping  from  the  oars,  appears  like  red-hot  molten 
metal. 

But  the  most  alluring  of  Nassau's  charms  is  the 
sea  bathing.  Either  in  the  sheltered  coves,  where 
the  sea  is  calm,  or  at  Hog  Island  with  its  beating 
surf,  the  water  is  always  tepid,  the  air  is  ever 
caressingly  warm.  And  when  tired  of  bathing, — 
if  indeed  one  can  ever  tire  of  such  a  luxury  as  this, — 
one  may  doze  beneath  the  shade  upon  the  beach, 
while  overhead  the  palms  whisper  a  drowsy 
lullaby,  their  drooping  fronds  rustling  like  the  sil- 
very burble  of  a  woodland  brook,  or  gently 
clashing  like  the  soft  patter  of  raindrops  on  a  roof. 

Far  to  the  eastward  of  Nassau,  at  the  very 
opposite  extremity  of  the  Bahaman  archipelago, 


THE  BAHAMAS  297 

is  an  interesting  group  of  islands  which,  although 
a  part  of  the  Bahamas,  are  under  the  government 
of  Jamaica. 

These  are  the  Turks  Islands,  the  Islands  of 
Salt — a]  long  low  strip  of  land  girt  with  silver- 
white  beaches  marred  with  the  blackened  bones  of 
wrecks.  At  one  end  a  solitary  lighthouse,  at  the 
other  extremity  a  tiny  rambling  town  of  lime- 
stone and  wooden  buildings,  such  is  Turk's  Island 
viewed  from  the  sea. 

Very  much  like  many  another  West  Indian 
town  is  the  port,  but  in  one  way  Turk's  Island 
differs  from  all  other  spots,  for  its  sole  industry,  its 
only  revenue,  the  occupation  in  which  everyone 
is  engaged,  is  salt. 

Indeed,  to  hear  the  Turks  Islanders  talk,  one 
would  imagine  salt  was  some  sort  of  vegetable,  for 
they  speak  of  "raising"  so  many  bushels  of  salt; 
of  "harvesting"  the  salt,  and  of  a  good  or  bad  salt 
"crop." 

Everywhere  about  the  town,  along  every  street, 
covering  vast  areas  of  lowland,  and  filling  count- 
less sheds,  are  tons  of  salt.  Like  huge  snowdrifts 
the  great  piles  rise  high  above  one's  head  on  either 
side  of  the  roads,  while  everywhere  are  donkey 
carts  and  mule  teams  laden  with  the  crystals  and, 
knee-deep  in  the  glistening  heaps,  negroes  are 
busily  shoveling  and  raking  over  the  half-dried 
mass. 


298  THE  WEST  INDIES 

•**C 

Back  of  the  town,  upon  the  lowland,  are  the 
"salt  pans,"  pond  depressions  walled  off  into 
squares  of  various  sizes  and  depths  and  connected 
with  the  sea  by  trenches  provided  with  gates. 

When  salt  is  to  be  made,  the  first  series  of  pans 
is  filled  with  sea-water,  by  opening  the  sluice 
gates,  and  here  it  is  allowed  to  stand  for  about  six 
weeks,  or  until  the  greater  portion  of  the  water 
has  evaporated.  The  residue  is  then  led  by  ditches 
into  the  second  series  of  shallower  "pans"  where  it 
remains  for  two  weeks  more,  by  which  time  it 
has  become  thick  and  syrup-like  in  consistency. 
As  it  will  no  longer  flow  freely  of  its  own  accord 
it  is  now  pumped,  by  queer  windmills  consisting 
of  a  series  of  boat  sails  fastened  to  a  horizontal 
frame,  into  the  last,  or  drying,  pans.  Here  it 
stands  for  two  or  three  weeks  until  crystallized, 
and  during  that  time  it  is  raked,  shoveled,  and 
tossed  about,  much  in  the  manner  of  grass  upon  a 
hay  field,  until  it  is  uniformly  dried. 

When  crystallization  is  complete  the  salt  is 
raked  into  piles  and  shoveled  into  carts  to  be 
transported  to  the  salt  houses,  where  it  is  stored, 
still  further  dried,  and  finally  ground  or  crushed 
and  packed  in  bags  or  barrels,  while  the  "crop" 
to  be  shipped  in  bulk  is  stored  in  immense  piles 
on  every  available  bit  of  unoccupied  land. 

Considering  the  size  of  the  island  a  surprising 
quantity  of  salt  is  "raised."  the  annual  crop 


THE  BAHAMAS  299 

amounting  to  nearly  half  a  million  bushels,  while  the 
crop  on  the  neighboring  Caicos  Islands  totals  about 
a  million  bushels  and  Little  Turk  produces  a 
quarter  of  a  million  more. 

Notwithstanding  this  output  the  Turks  Islanders 
are  among  the  most  poverty-stricken  of  West 
Indians,  for  every  article  of  wearing  apparel,  every 
stick  of  fuel,  and  every  bit  of  food,  must  be  im- 
ported from  the  United  States  or  the  neighboring 
islands.  Twice  a  month  the  Clyde  Line  steamship 
breaks  the  monotony  of  the  people's  lives,  frequent 
sailing  vessels  call  for  salt  cargoes,  cable  communi- 
cation keeps  them  in  touch  with  the  doings  of  the 
world,  and  good  roads  enable  those  who  own 
carriages  to  drive  about.  Around  some  of  the 
houses  are  trees  and  flowers,  even  a  few  palms, 
all  carefully  brought  from  other  lands  and  planted 
in  soil  imported  from  Santo  Domingo.  Strangely 
enough  the  inhabitants  are  intensely  patriotic  and 
think  their  island  the  finest  spot  on  earth,  despite 
the  fact  that  it  is  quite  out  of  the  world,  its  only 
scenery  salt  ponds  and  its  only  product  salt. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 
CUBA,  THE  "PEARL  OF  THE  ANTILLES" 

SOUTH  of  the  Bahamas  and  stretching  along  the 
horizon  for  nearly  eight  hundred  miles  lies  Cuba, 
historic,  magnificent,  and  vast,  the  largest  of  the 
West  Indies  and  the  "Pearl  of  the  Antilles." 

Fortunate  is  the  visitor  to  Cuba  who  first  sees 
Havana  from  the  sea  at  sunrise.  To  the  left,  the 
grim  old  Morro  crowning  its  rocky  headland,  to 
the  right,  the  flat-roofed,  sleeping  town,  stretching 
for  miles  along  the  shore,  while,  in  the  background, 
soft  green  hills  loom  mistily  against  the  gold  and 
crimson  glory  of  the  dawn. 

Bathed  in  the  soft  effulgent  light  of  breaking 
day,  the  many-tinted  city  seems  transformed  to 
a  bit  of  fairyland, — unreal,  phantasmal,  ethereal, 
— beautiful  as  a  dream  of  Heaven,  and  as  fleeting. 
Above  the  sea  of  roofs,  blue  wreaths  of  smoke 
float  upward  from  many  a  newly  kindled  fire; 
the  distant  crowing  of  cocks  and  barking  of  dogs 
are  borne  faintly  seaward  on  the  morning  breeze; 
a  few  moving  specks  of  men  are  seen  upon  the 
streets,  a  trolley  car  rattles  noisily  along  the 
300 


CUBA  301 

water-front ;  factory  whistles  break  the  silence  with 
roaring  summons  to  labor;  the  ringing  call  of  a  bugle 
sounds  from  the  parapets  of  Morro ;  upward  to  the 
summit  of  the  flagstaff  flutters  the  lone-starred  flag 
of  Cuba,  and  day  has  come. 

Under  the  frowning  battlements  of  Morro,  and 
past  the  silent  guns  on  ancient  Punta  Fort,  the 
ship  steams  slowly  through  the  narrow  strait 
of  blue  that  leads  to  the  harbor,  where,  swinging 
at  their  moorings,  lying  at  the  massive  steel  and 
concrete  docks — a  forest  of  masts  and  funnels 
as  far  as  the  eye  can  see — are  scores  of  great 
ocean-going  steamers  and  countless  sailing  vessels 
flying  the  flags  of  every  nation.  Puffing  launches, 
bright-hued  rowboats,  immense  lighters,  fussy 
tugs,  and  swift-moving  ferryboats  ply  back  and 
forth  in  every  direction.  And,  as  the  traveler 
looks  upon  this  mass  of  shipping,  the  busy  docks, 
the  teeming  water-front,  the  puffing  locomotives 
and  clanging  trolley  cars,  the  towering,  smoke- 
belching  factory  chimneys,  and  the  vast  sea  of 
roofs,  broken  by  the  steel  and  concrete,  many- 
storied  heights  of  modern  buildings,  he  realizes 
that  here  indeed  is  a  metropolis,  a  huge,  modern, 
bustling  city. 

With  more  commerce  than  any  other  port  in 
America,  save  New  York,  with  close  to  half  a 
million  inhabitants,  with  buildings  the  equal 
of  any  in  the  world,  with  palatial  hotels,  boule- 


302  THE  WEST  INDIES 

vards  magnificent  beyond  compare,  theaters, 
among  which  is  the  fifth  largest  in  the  world, 
stores  that  are  a  revelation,  and  every  device, 
invention,  improvement,  and  innovation  known  to 
the  twentieth  century,  yet  Havana  is  as  fasci- 
natingly foreign,  as  picturesque,  as  colorful  and 
charming,  and  as  strange  as  any  city  of  the  Old 
World. 

Four  centuries  have  passed  since  Havana  first 
sprang  into  being,  four  centuries  of  war  and  peace, 
of  fire  and  sword,  of  cruel  misrule  and  triumphant 
freedom,  and,  while  vast  changes  have  been 
wrought,  since  that  day  when  the  banner  of  Spain 
was  hauled  from  the  staff  on  which  it  had  flaunted 
its  red  and  yellow  stripes  for  so  long,  still  the  life, 
the  people,  the  customs,  and  the  atmosphere  of  old 
Havana  remain  unaltered.  Modernity  has  im- 
proved it,  sanitation  has  stamped  out  disease  and 
has  transformed  it  from  a  plague-ridden  to  a 
marvelously  healthy  city;  the  bad  has  been 
eliminated,  but  without  robbing  it  of  aught  that 
was  good,  lovable,  and  fascinating,  and  to-day  the 
capital  of  the  "Pearl  of  the  Antilles"  is  the  same 
irresistible,  quaint  old  city  as  of  yore. 

Many  of  the  streets  are  as  narrow  as  bypaths, 
and  lead,  like  canons  dim  and  cool  with  shadows, 
between  Spanish  buildings,  the  tiled  fronts  and 
jutting  balconies  with  scarce  a  dozen  feet  of  space 
between  them. 


i  i //A^^nnnnni   \\riUi  uu^rng^  "V 

||I|Il|ijjj|||p|ll||j||i|l||jjj 

S5  al-d  s^  "  "  ^%Q  a  S  « J*  "  J  ""S  2  ss  wl  «  ^sl  **!.  %** 


I 


•SJSM/Ji1 

•pijjil  , 

-     ^w^^0^      *- 

Jill  i  lit! 

ils-'SjS0  rt         OuC 

s^&s^^^oaaHta 
H^K  s  &ig(Sj  sos^a 


CUBA  303 

Great  archways  in  ponderous  walls  lead  to  huge, 
colonnaded  patios  wherein  fountains  splash,  birds 
sing,  and  flowering  plants  fill  the  air  with  perfume; 
at  windows,  barred  by  hand-wrought  iron  grill- 
work,  dark-eyed,  languorous  women  idly  watch  the 
passing  throngs,  while  the  tinkle  of  guitars  and  the 
strains  of  soft  Spanish  music  mingle  with  the  roar 
of  traffic  and  the  honk  of  automobile  horns. 

For  ancient,  picturesque,  and  delightfully  foreign 
as  are  these  byways  of  old  Havana,  yet  through 
them  flows  a  constant  stream  of  modern  traffic, 
pedestrians  of  every  class,  color,  and  race ;  rubber- 
tired  Victorias;  mule-drawn  drays  and  ox-carts; 
ponderous  motor  trucks  and  vans;  rushing  motor 
delivery  wagons;  softly  purring  limousines  and 
clanging  trolley  cars.  Marvelous  it  seems  that 
the  narrow  lanes  can  accommodate  the  jam,  that 
accidents  are  not  of  constant  occurrence,  but  the 
traffic  moves  swiftly  and  with  scarce  a  hitch,  for 
the  police  are  efficient,  and  the  drivers  skillful, 
and  accustomed  to  conditions  which  would  make  a 
New  York  taxi-driver  pale. 

Overhead,  during  the  sunny  hours  of  the  day, 
stretch  canopies  gay  with  color,  gorgeous  with 
painted  advertisements  and  strange  Spanish  names 
and  which,  far  above  the  streets,  form  a  covered 
way  like  an  Oriental  bazaar  between  the  stores 
of  the  shopping  districts.  And  such  shops!  No 
dingy,  dusty,  old-fashioned  affairs  are  these,  but 


304  THE  WEST  INDIES 

modern  stores  with  enormous  plate  glass  windows, 
brass  and  mahogany  fronts,  and  within  which 
every  article  known  to  the  world  may  be  found. 
The  only  thing  wanting  is  the  modern  American 
department  store,  but  the  Cuban  merchant  has 
his  own  ideas  on  such  matters,  and  most  peculiar 
some  of  these  are  to  the  Northerner.  Rosaries, 
crucifixes,  prayer  books,  and  lottery  tickets  seem  a 
strange  combination  to  us;  to  find  confectionery 
side  by  side  with  firearms  and  ammunition  is  a 
surprise,  and  one  gasps  in  amazement  at  sight  of 
canary  birds  sold  in  a  shop  with  quilts  and  mat- 
tresses; but  no  doubt,  to  the  Cuban  mind,  our 
habit  of  selling  cigars  and  postage  stamps  in  drug 
stores  is  quite  as  incomprehensible. 

One  must  not  judge  Havana's  streets  by  the 
narrow  ways  of  the  old  portion  of  the  city,  however, 
for  there  are  numerous  thoroughfares  as  wide  and 
modern  as  any  of  our  own,  while  the  Prado  and 
the  Malecon  have  few  rivals  for  beauty  or  perfec- 
tion in  any  city  of  the  world. 

In  Havana,  all  roads  lead  to  the  Central  Plaza 
or  "Parque  Central,"  the  heart  of  the  city,  the 
spot  from  which  the  main  arteries  and  trolley 
lines  radiate,  and  about  which  are  located  the 
most  splendid  and  noteworthy  buildings,  the 
theaters,  the  club  houses,  and  the  hotels. 

Beautiful  in  itself  is  the  plaza,  a  great  open 
space  occupying  several  squares  and  filled  with 


CUBA  305 

palms,  shade  trees,  and  beautiful  flowers ;  a  splen- 
did statue  of  the  martyred  patriot,  Marti,  in  the 
center,  and  threaded  by  smooth  paths  bordered 
by  benches  for  those  who  would  tarry  beneath  the 
shade.  And  sitting  here  and  looking  about  at  the 
surroundings,  the  wonderful  beauty,  the  marvel- 
ous wealth,  and  the  progressive  modernity  of 
Cuba's  capital  are  borne  forcibly  upon  the  visitor. 

On  all  four  sides  are  massive  buildings,  con- 
spicuous among  them  being  the  Hotel  Plaza, 
the  Bazaar  de  Paris,  the  Asturias  Club,  the  Hotel 
Inglaterra  and  Telegraf os,  and  the  ornately  beauti- 
ful Gallegos  Club — a  club  house  costing  over  one 
million  dollars  and  erected  by  clerks  and  work, 
men — while  beyond  is  the  magnificent  new  Presi- 
dential Palace. 

Everywhere  upon  the  streets  are  luxurious  motor 
cars, — many  in  the  ten  thousand  dollar  class, — 
splendid  horse-drawn  vehicles,  and  fashionably 
dressed  crowds  of  men  and  women,  while  upon  the 
roofs  blaze  and  scintillate  a  myriad  of  electric 
signs  which  would  be  a  credit  to  upper  Broadway. 

About  the  plaza  centers  the  gay  night  life  of  the 
city,  for  Havana  wakes  up  about  the  time  that 
other  cities  go  to  bed,  and  here,  better  than  in  any 
other  one  spot  in  the  city,  the  visitor  may  find 
constant  interest  and  amusement  and  can  best 
study  the  life  and  ways  of  the  people. 

Each  of  the  immense  buildings  about  the  park  oc- 


306  THE  WEST  INDIES 

cupies  an  entire  square — great,  massive  structures 
of  stone  and  concrete  several  stories  in  height  and 
supported  by  huge  columns  at  the  edges  of  the 
sidewalks,  thus  forming  cool,  shady  colonnades 
with  arched  openings  in  which  are  displayed 
the  innumerable  wares  of  the  booths  and  stores  on 
the  ground  floors.  Typical  of  Havana  are  these 
bazaar-like  arcades,  the  only  doors  or  walls  to  the 
shops  being  iron  screens  which  are  rolled  up  out  of 
sight  during  the  day,  and  here,  in  the  open  air, 
the  Havanese  shop  and  gossip,  eat,  drink,  and  are 
shaved  in  full  view  of  the  ever-passing  crowds. 

Between  the  booths,  from  side  to  side  and  di- 
agonally through  the  buildings,  run  streets  or  pas- 
sages also  bordered  by  countless  shops,  the  whole 
forming  a  veritable  city  of  stores,  in  a  way  like  a 
gigantic  department  store,  save  that  the  various 
shopkeepers  have  no  interests  in  common  and  each 
is  a  keen  rival  and  competitor  of  his  neighbors. 
Even  more  heterogeneous  than  our  five-and-ten- 
cent  stores  is  the  variety  of  articles  to  be  found  in 
one  of  these  great  bazaars,  for  hats,  shoes,  china, 
laces,  toys,  jewelry,  baskets,  embroidery,  liquors, 
groceries,  tobacco  and  cigars,  saddles  and  har- 
ness, souvenirs  and  post  cards,  curios  and  furniture 
are  side  by  side,  while  for  good  measure  there  are 
bootblacks,  restaurants,  barber  shops,  and  cafes. 

The  visitor  to  Havana  will  find  it  a  tiresome 
undertaking  to  wander  about  the  city  and  see  all 


CUBA  307 

the  interesting  spots  afoot,  and  while  the  numerous 
trolley  cars  will  carry  one  to  a  large  proportion 
of  the  more  important  places,  it  is  far  more  satis- 
factory to  do  one's  sight-seeing  by  means  of  a  cab. 
The  "coches, "  as  these  quaint  Victoria-like  public 
carriages  are  called,  are  one  of  Havana's  time 
honored  institutions.  They  are  always  in  evidence, 
scores  of  them  lining  the  curb  about  the  plaza  and 
in  the  busier  thoroughfares,  and  they  are  the  cheap- 
est thing  in  Cuba,  and  for  the  modest  sum  of  ten 
cents  one  or  two  people  may  ride  anywhere  within 
the  city  limits,  while  a  third  passenger  costs  but 
five  cents  additional.  If  longer  trips  are  desired, 
the  "coches"  may  be  hired  at  $1.00  to  $1.25  per 
hour,  and  in  a  few  hours'  time  every  point  of  interest 
in  the  city  and  its  environs  may  be  visited.  As  a 
rule  the  driver  or  "cochero"  may  be  trusted  to 
show  the  stranger  all  places  of  importance,  but  it 
is  well  to  arrange  beforehand  just  where  one  is  to 
go  in  a  certain  time,  as  otherwise  the  jehu  may 
cover  the  same  ground  twice  or  may  travel  by 
such  devious  routes  that  far  more  time  than  is 
necessary  is  consumed.  Few  of  the  "cocheros" 
speak  English,  but  one  may  always  call  upon  an 
employee  of  the  hotel  to  act  as  interpreter  and 
make  all  business  arrangements. 

Just  what  route  should  be  taken,  or  in  what 
order  the  more  interesting  features  of  Havana 
should  be  visited,  are  matters  which  each  visitor 


3o8  THE  WEST  INDIES 

must  decide  for  himself,  but,  as  a  rule,  the  drive 
always  begins  with  the  Prado. 

This  magnificent  thoroughfare  stretches  from 
Colon  Park  to  the  water-front,  about  two  miles, 
and  throughout  its  entire  length  it  is  bordered 
by  splendid  buildings,  while  in  the  center,  between 
the  two  asphalt  driveways,  is  a  series  of  parklets 
shaded  by  poincianas,  laurel  trees,  and  palms. 

Colon  Park,  at  the  upper  extremity  of  the  Prado, 
is  a  charming  spot  of  grass  plots,  shrubbery,  and 
splendid  trees,  with  numerous  paths  and  walks 
through  avenues  of  royal  palms,  while  opposite 
its  entrance  in  the  center  of  the  Prado  is  a  strik- 
ingly beautiful  monument  supporting  the  figure 
of  an  Indian  goddess  known  as  "La  Habena"  or 
"La  India."  Justly  proud  of  the  Prado  are  the 
Cubans,  and  with  good  reason,  for  from  end  to 
end  it  is  a  street  to  excite  the  admiration  of  any 
one. 

Even  during  the  day,  the  Prado  is  filled  with 
carriages,  automobiles,  and  pedestrians,  but  after 
sundown  it  fairly  teems  and  swarms  with  life, 
and  it  would  be  a  difficult  matter  to  find  another 
thoroughfare  in  all  the  world  which  is  gayer,  nois- 
ier, or  more  animated  than  the  Prado  between  the 
early  evening  and  midnight.  The  hours  of  dark- 
ness are  the  Cubans'  playtime,  and  long  after  mid- 
night and  well  towards  break  of  day,  the  Plaza  and 
Prado,  the  Malecon,  and  many  a  lesser  street  are 


CUBA  309 

ablaze  with  lights  and  noisy  with  song,  music, 
and  laughter,  while  vehicles  move  in  a  constant 
stream,  and  cafes,  restaurants,  and  theaters  are 
filled  to  overflowing. 

At  the  edge  of  the  sea,  with  Morro  in  plain 
view  across  the  narrow  harbor  entrance,  the  Prado 
joins  the  Malecon  in  a  broad  open  space,  bor- 
dered by  the  sea-wall  sweeping  in  a  semicircle  from 
the  old  Punta  Fort  on  the  right  to  the  Miramar 
Hotel  on  the  left. 

Fronting  quaint  old  Punta  with  its  jutting  sentry 
boxes,  antique  guns,  and  grassy  moat,  is  a  large 
savanna  smoothly  swarded,  cut  by  asphalt  drives 
and  set  with  trees,  flower  beds,  and  tropic  shrub- 
bery. On  the  farther  side  is  the  old  jail,  a  mon- 
strous yellow  building  designed  to  hold  five 
thousand  prisoners, — and  often  filled  at  that,  dur- 
ing the  Spanish  regime, — but  now  transformed  to 
neat  and  sanitary  quarters  for  the  Board  of  Educa- 
tion. Half  way  between  the  jail  and  Punta  stand 
the  remains  of  a  one-time  building  whereon 
is  a  commemorative  tablet  marking  the  spot 
where  eight  Cuban  students  were  massacred  in 
1871. 

From  the  Punta  the  wide  and  perfect  roadway 
of  the  Malecon  sweeps  beside  the  sea  wall  for  sev- 
eral miles,  one  of  the  pleasantest  driveways  in  the 
world,  with  the  residences  of  wealthy  Cubans  on 
the  one  hand  and,  on  the  other,  the  sapphire  sea 


3io  THE  WEST  INDIES 

and  breaking  surf,  with  the  ceaseless,  refreshing 
breeze  cool  with  the  breath  of  the  ocean. 

By  continuing  along  the  Malecon  one  passes 
the  Leper  Hospital  of  San  Lazaro  and  the  odd 
watch  tower,  from  which,  in  olden  times,  the 
Spaniards  kept  a  lookout  for  the  approach  of 
pirates  and  other  foes,  and  just  beyond,  reaches 
the  Vedado,  a  residential  suburb.  From  the 
Vedado  one  may  return  to  the  plaza  by  any  one 
of  half  a  dozen  routes,  one  of  the  best  being  by 
way  of  Colon  Cemetery,  El  Principe  Fort,  and 
the  Botanic  Gardens. 

It  was  in  Colon  Cemetery  that  the  victims  of 
the  Maine  disaster  were  buried,  and  a  splendid 
monument  marks  their  former  resting  place,  but, 
aside  from  this,  the  cemetery  is  worthy  of  a  visit 
for  its  magnificent  sculptured  arched  gateway 
and  numerous  costly  monuments,  while,  if  a  funeral 
is  taking  place,  the  stranger  will  find  the  hearse  as 
interesting  as  anything  to  be  seen.  Drawn  by  six 
or  more  plumed  and  gaily  caparisoned  horses, 
decorated  with  scarlet  and  gold,  driven  by  liveried 
outriders,  and  with  footmen  dressed  in  sixteenth 
century  costumes,  with  cocked  hats,  gold  lace, 
scarlet  knickerbockers,  and  powdered  wigs,  the 
Havana  hearses  appear  more  like  circus  wagons 
than  anything  else  to  Northern  eyes,  but  to  the 
Cubans  they  are  the  correct  thing,  and  one  may 
know  the  deceased  Cuban's  standing  and  wealth 


CUBA  311 

by  the  number  of  horses  and  the  gorgeousness  of 
the  vehicle  which  carries  him  to  his  last  resting 
place. 

Principe  Fort,  a  quaint,  ancient  structure  with 
immense  walls,  deep  moat,  and  portcullis,  is  at 
present  used  only  as  a  jail,  but  from  the  hilltop 
on  which  it  stands  one  may  obtain  a  superb  view 
of  the  great  city,  the  harbor,  and  the  Morro 
and  Cabanas  beyond. 

No  visit  to  a  West  Indian  town  would  be  com- 
plete without  a  trip  to  the  market,  and  in  Havana 
there  are  several,  two  of  which,  the  Colon  and  the 
Tacon,  are  very  large  and  within  a  short  walk  of 
the  Parque  Central. 

Tacon  Market  is  a  block  from  Colon  Park  and 
four  blocks  from  the  plaza,  while  Colon  Market 
is  between  Zulueta  and  Montserrate  streets,  a 
block  from  the  Plaza  Hotel  and  Central  Park. 
Here  one  may  see  every  fruit  and  vegetable  of  the 
tropics,  as  well  as  a  great  variety  of  those  familiar 
to  our  Northern  markets,  for  Cuba's  soil  and  climate 
are  well  adapted  to  raising  the  products  of  the 
temperate  as  well  as  the  torrid  zones.  Interesting 
too  are  the'  fish  stalls  with  their  marvelously 
colored,  gorgeously  tinted  denizens  of  Cuba's  wa- 
ters, while  in  some  ways  the  poultry  section  of  the 
market  is  the  most  interesting  of  all.  The  Cuban 
poultryman  has  ways  of  his  own  and  divides  his 
fowls  into  numerous  sections,  each  of  which  has 


312  THE  WEST  INDIES 

its  own  price.  Thus,  one  may  purchase  a  breast, 
wing,  leg,  neck,  or  even  a  head  or  giblets,  according 
to  one's  taste  or  needs,  and  the  stranger  is  filled 
with  wonder  at  the  multitude  of  cuts,  steaks  and 
joints  which  the  Cuban  manages  to  dissect  from  a 
turkey  or  a  chicken. 

Not  far  from  Colon  Market  is  one  of  the  few 
remaining  fragments  of  the  vast  city  wall  which 
originally  encircled  Havana  and  did  much  to 
protect  its  riches  and  its  people  from  pirates  and 
other  enemies. 

A  few  steps  from  this  little  corner  of  wall,  with 
its  single  picturesque  sentry  box,  is  the  lovely  Los 
Angeles  Church  with  its  soft,  cream-colored 
steeple  and  roof,  prickly  as  a  cactus,  with  miniature 
spires.  About  this  church  are  some  of  the  quaint- 
est and  oldest  streets  in  Havana,  crooked,  running 
at  all  angles  and  narrow — the  Loma  del  Angel  be- 
ing scarce  ten  feet  in  width  and  the  narrowest 
thoroughfare  in  the  city. 

Another  very  interesting  section  of  Havana  is 
the  district  about  the  Plaza  de  Armas  at  the  foot  of 
O'Reilly  and  Obispo  streets.  Here,  opposite  the 
open  square  of  the  Plaza  de  Armas  with  its  hand- 
some statue  of  Ferdinand  VI,  is  the  spot  where 
the  founders  of  Havana  first  landed  and  which  is 
marked  by  a  modest  little  temple-like  chapel 
and  monument  within  an  ornamental  iron  and 
stone  fence.  This  is  the  Templete  and  beside 


CUBA  313 

it  stands  a  ceiba  tree,  a  scion  of  the  original  tree 
beneath  which  the  first  Mass  in  Cuba  was  said 
when  the  colonists  first  stepped  ashore.  Once  a 
year  the  Templete  is  opened  and,  on  the  night  of 
November  I5th,  and  the  following  day,  it  is 
illuminated  and  decorated  in  commemoration  of 
the  founding  of  the  city. 

All  about  here  is  historic  ground,  for  this  was 
the  nucleus  of  the  city,  and  from  here  it  has  grown 
and  spread  in  every  direction.  The  palace  of  the 
former  viceroys  and  governors-general — later  used 
as  the  presidential  palace — fronts. on  the  plaza 
and  is  open  to  visitors.  Within  it,  in  a  patio 
filled  with  palms  and  flowers,  is  a  striking  statue 
of  Columbus;  the  massive  marble  stairways  are 
beautiful,  and  the  magnificence  of  Spanish  domin- 
ion is  still  visible  on  every  side,  especially  in  the 
immense  throne  room. 

But  the  most  noteworthy  building,  and  the  most 
historical  in  the  neighborhood,  is  the  unpretentious 
gray  stone  pile  on  the  northern  side  of  the  square. 
This  is  La  Fuerza,  once  a  powerful  fort  and  the 
oldest  building  in  Havana,  built  in  1538  under  the 
personal  supervision  of  Ferdinand  de  Soto.  Here, 
in  the  thick-walled,  moated  fastness,  De  Soto  left 
his  wife,  the  beautiful  Donna  Isabel,  when  he 
sailed  forth  to  Florida  in  1539,  and  here  she 
waited  through  four  long  years  of  patient,  ever- 
hopeful  vigil  until,  realizing  her  husband  would 


314  THE  WEST  INDIES 

never  more  return,  she  succumbed  to  her 
grief. 

To-day,  the  drawbridge  spans  a  dry  and  grass- 
grown  moat,  the  guns  will  never  more  roar  forth 
their  messages  of  death,  no  grim  sentinels  pace  the 
parapets,  but,  looking  seaward  from  the  battle- 
ments, one  may  imagine  Donna  Isabel,  with  tear- 
stained  cheeks,  gazing  ever  westward  in  the  hope 
of  seeing  the  white  glint  of  sails  upon  the  deep 
blue  sea,  the  flutter  of  gold  and  crimson  flags,  the 
glint  of  sun  on  casque  and  breastplate,  as  the  ship 
she  longed  for  came  bravely  home  to  Havana 
with  De  Soto,  flushed  with  fame  and  glory,  upon 
the  lofty  poop. 

Little  she  dreamed  that  in  a  far  and  unknown 
land  the  body  of  her  Ferdinand  was  being  lowered, 
in  secret  and  at  dead  of  night,  within  the  black 
and  silent  waters  of  the  Mississippi,  and  still 
less  did  she  dream  that  above  the  fortress  he  had 
builded,  would  one  day  fly  a  new  flag,  the  banner 
of  a  people  and  a  nation  fated  to  spring  up  and 
overthrow  the  mighty  power  of  Spain. 

Many  a  hard-fought  battle  has  old  La  Fuerza 
seen.  Stoutly  and  well  has  it  fulfilled  its  mission 
to  defy  the  guns  of  pirates,  buccaneers,  and  fight- 
ing ships  of  Britain,  France,  and  Holland.  Within 
its  massive  walls  has  rested  wealth  untold,  count- 
less millions  in  gold  and  precious  stones,  for  La 
Fuerza  was  the  treasure  vault  of  the  New  World, 


CUBA  315 

and  here  were  stored,  for  safety,  the  riches  of 
galleons  and  plate  ships  homeward  bound  from 
Peru  and  Mexico,  Cartagena  and  Porto  Bello. 
Never  has  La  Fuerza  fallen,  never  have  its  colors 
been  struck  to  besieger,  save  when  the  British 
took  the  Morro  and  turned  its  guns  upon  the  sister 
fort  across  the  harbor. 

Only  a  short  distance  from  La  Fuerza  and  the 
Plaza  de  Armas,  a  few  blocks  up  Emperado 
Street  behind  the  palace,  is  the  cathedral,  a  Latin- 
Gothic  imposing  church  with  twin  towers,  which 
was  commenced  in  1656  and  completed  in  1724. 
Within  its  hoary  gray  stone  walls  are  many  fine 
paintings  by  old  masters,  while  the  altar  of  Italian 
marble,  the  mosaic  pavement,  and  the  jeweled 
and  embroidered  vestments  are  truly  marvel- 
ous. 

But  the  cathedral's  chief  fame  is  due  to  its  claim 
as  the  former  resting  place  of  the  bones  of  Colum- 
bus, which  it  never  contained,  if  we  can  credit 
the  most  painstaking  researches  and  indisputable 
historic  facts.  Tradition  dies  hard,  however,  and 
while  it  has  been  definitely  established  that  the 
ashes  of  the  discoverer  still  remain  in  the  cathedral 
at  Santo  Domingo  City, — where  they  were  buried 
after  their  removal  from  Spain, — and  that  the 
supposed  remains  taken  to  Havana  were  those  of 
Diego,  his  son,  yet  many  people  still  cling  to  the 
belief  that  the  discoverer  of  America  rested 


316  THE  WEST  INDIES 

in  Havana's  cathedral  until  removed  by  the 
Spaniards  after  the  Cuban  war. 

Many  another  point  of  interest  is  to  be  seen 
about  Havana.  There  are  quaint  historic  old 
churches,  ancient  monasteries  and  convents,  the 
theaters,  the  pelota  games,  lovely  Marianao  beach 
with  its  bathing  and  yachting;  the  magnificent 
modern  Central  Railway  Station,  the  beautiful 
Produce  Exchange  Building,  or  La  Lonja,  the 
library  with  over  twenty  thousand  volumes, 
among  which  are  priceless  old  works  of  early 
Spanish  chroniclers,  and  the  cigar  factories, 
while  of  greater  interest  than  all,  to  many  visitors, 
are  the  Morro  and  Cabanas  castles. 

Both  of  these  are  within  easy  reach,  both  are 
open  to  the  public,  and  no  visitor  to  Havana  should 
consider  his  stay  complete  without  seeing  these 
wonderful  old  fortifications.  From  Caballera 
Wharf  launches  and  small  boats  may  be  taken 
across  the  harbor,  the  trip  costing  ten  cents  each 
way,  and  from  the  landing  place  below  Cabanas 
Heights  a  long,  winding,  covered  way  leads  up  the 
steep  slope  to  the  summit. 

As  the  climb  is  very  fatiguing  and  hot  it  should 
be  made  as  early  in  the  morning  as  possible,  or  else 
on  a  cool  and  cloudy  day,  and  upon  reaching 
Cabanas  a  pass  should  be  obtained  to  visit  Morro. 

Cabanas,  although  built  as  a  fortress,  has  never 
been  under  fire  and  has  served  no  other  purpose 


CUBA  317 

than  a  prison  and  barracks  where,  during  the 
numerous  revolts  of  the  Cubans,  the  Spaniards 
confined,  tortured,  and  executed  countless  num- 
bers of  the  patriots.  Even  before  one  enters 
the  forbidding  walls  of  the  vast  fortress  its  sinister 
history  is  brought  vividly  to  mind,  for  at  the 
right  of  the  portal  is  a  shallow  moat,  above  which, 
on  the  walls,  is  a  beautiful  commemorative  tablet 
of  bronze.  This  is  the  famous  Laurel  Ditch,  a 
spot  wherein  the  condemned  prisoners  were  placed 
against  the  wall  and  shot  without  trial,  and  one  may 
still  see  the  bullet  marks  indenting  the  masonry 
for  a  space  of  near  one  hundred  feet,  mutely 
but  eloquently  testifying  to  the  number  of  firing 
squads  whose  leveled  rifles  sent  victims  of  Spain's 
oppression  to  their  deaths.  But  cruel  and  in- 
human as  were  these  executions,  those  who  fell 
in  the  Laurel  Ditch  were  less  to  be  pitied  than 
those  who  remained  alive  in  the  dark  and  awful 
dungeons  within  the  walls. 

Not  until  one  enters  Cabanas  can  one  realize 
the  immensity  of  the  place,  which  is  a  mile  in 
length,  one  thousand  feet  in  width,  and  which  cost 
over  fourteen  million  dollars,  while  eleven  years 
were  required  for  its  construction.  Within  this 
vast  castle-fortress  are  cells,  dungeons,  and  secret 
passageways  without  end,  many  far  underground, 
and  reminding  one  of  a  gigantic,  fossilized  rabbit 
warren  full  of  holes  and  burrows  made  by  pre- 


3i8  THE  WEST  INDIES 

historic  monsters  and  turned  to  stone  From  the 
lofty  ramparts,  with  their  curious  ancient  cannon, 
a  wonderful  view  of  harbor  and  city  is  presented, 
with  the  rich,  green,  smiling  country  beyond  and 
star-shaped  Atares  Castle  on  the  heights  above  the 
town — the  spot  wherein  Crittenden  and  his  fifty 
Kentucky  comrades  were  shot  down. 

Far  older  and  more  interesting  than  Cabanas  is 
the  Morro,  a  short  walk  to  the  north,  for  it  was 
completed  in  1597,  nearly  two  centuries  before 
Cabanas,  and  designed  as  an  exact  replica  of  the 
Moorish  fortress  at  Lisbon. 

But  through  the  repairs  and  alterations  of  three 
hundred  years  the  original  design  and  appearance 
of  Morro  have  been  greatly  changed  and,  at  first 
sight,  it  appears  far  more  modern  than  either 
the  Morro  at  San  Juan,  Porto  Rico,  or  the  fortress 
of  the  same  name  at  Santiago. 

As  is  the  case  with  Cabanas,  the  immense 
strength  and  size  of  the  Morro  do  not  impress  the 
observer  until  within  its  walls  which  rise  for  one 
hundred  feet  and  more,  sheer  from  the  bare  and 
wave-beaten  cliffs  above  the  sea.  Stupendously 
thick  and  strong  they  are  too,  and  absolutely 
inaccessible,  save  from  the  landward  side  where 
enormous  moats,  forty  feet  in  width  and  seventy 
feet  deep,  have  been  hewn  from  the  solid  rock  and 
are  spanned  by  drawbridges  leading  to  the  huge 
sally  port. 


CUBA  319 

In  the  center  of  the  castle  is  a  large  open 
parade  ground,  about  which  are  dark  gloomy 
casements,  and  from  here  a  sloping,  paved  way 
leads  downward  towards  the  dungeons  and  the  sea, 
and,  in  one  place,  the  visitor  is  shown  a  steep 
slide  through  which,  in  former  times,  the  prisoners, 
both  dead  and  alive,  were  slipped  into  the  waves  to 
feed  the  sharks  in  the  Nido  de  Tiburones  (Shark's 
Nest)  just  below. 

Built  to  protect  Havana  from  enemies  approach- 
ing from  the  sea,  yet  never  but  once  has  the 
fortress  been  seriously  exposed  to  attack.  That 
was  in  1762  when  the  British  laid  siege  to  Havana 
and  the  Morro  proved  the  undoing  of  the  city  it  was 
designed  to  defend,  for  it  was  mined  and  captured 
by  the  English  from  the  land  side  and  its  guns, 
trained  on  La  Fuerza  and  La  Punta,  compelled 
the  surrender  of  the  town.  Obsolete,  useless 
against  modern  artillery,  but  imposing  and  pictur- 
esque as  ever,  the  Morro  stands  to-day,  a  wonder- - 
ful  monument,  a  splendid  relic  of  the  past,  a 
mighty  engine  of  war  converted  to  the  needs  of 
peace,  a  giant  created  to  destroy,  serving  to  safe- 
guard, life,  for  above  its  ramparts  stands  the 
slender  tower  of  the  wireless  station,  while,  from 
the  lofty  lighthouse  within  its  walls,  a  bright 
beam  guides  the  mariner  in  safety  towards  the 
harbor. 

To  many  Havana  is  Cuba  and  Cuba  is  Havana, 


320  THE  WEST  INDIES 

and  many  visitors  to  the  island  see  nothing  out- 
side of  the  capital.  But  while  Havana  is  the 
largest  of  Cuban  towns,  the  center  of  the  wealth, 
business,  and  commerce  of  the  republic,  yet  there 
is  much  to  be  seen  elsewhere,  and,  to  see  the 
best  of  Cuba,  to  know  the  Pearl  of  the  Antilles 
for  what  it  is,  and  to  obtain  an  intelligent  idea 
of  its  products,  resources,  scenery,  development, 
and  attractions,  the  traveler  should  visit  all 
the  more  important  towns  reached  by  coasting 
steamers  or  railways,  or  both. 

So  vast  is  Cuba,  so  different  are  its  various 
provinces,  so  varied  its  resources,  scenery,  and 
climate,  so  numerous  its  towns,  and  so  innumerable 
its  places  of  interest  and  its  attractions,  that  to 
describe  the  island  adequately  would  require 
not  one,  but  many,  chapters, — even  an  entire 
volume  or  more. 

Without  going  far  afield  the  visitor  to  Cuba  may 
see  considerable  of  the  interior  of  the  island  and 
its  resources,  and  there  are  many  short  trips  from 
Havana  which  may  be  taken  by  railway,  boat,  or 
trolley  line. 

By  crossing  the  bay,  by  ferry,  from  Havana,  one 
may  visit  Regla,  a  little  village  once  a  famous 
resort  of  smugglers  and  pirates,  but  now  of  little 
interest  save  as  the  terminus  of  an  electric  line 
to  Guanabacoa,  an  interesting  town,  at  one  time 
a  very  fashionable  summer  resort,  and  famed  for 


CUBA  321 

its  medicinal  springs.  It  was  here  that  Ocampo 
landed  in  1508  and  pitched  the  seams  of  his  ships 
with  asphalt  from  the  hills  behind  the  town.  From 
the  fact  that  his  vessels  were  careened  in  the  bay, 
which  now  forms  Havana's  harbor,  the  latter 
received  the  name  of  Puerto  de  Carenas,  which  it 
retained  for  many  years. 

Here,  too,  is  the  College  of  Pious  Souls,  one  of 
the  most  famous  of  Cuban  schools,  a  massive 
building  very  similar  to  the  old  California  Mis- 
sions, with  pillared  colonnades  and  flower-filled 
patios.  There  are  also  many  notable  old  churches 
in  the  town,  that  of  Potosi  being  famous  for  its 
miracles  and  which  is  annually  visited  by  thou- 
sands of  pilgrims  from  all  parts  of  the  island. 

From  Guanabacoa  a  bus  line  runs  to  Cojimar,  a 
seacoast  resort  with  a  magnificent  bathing  beach,  in 
the  shelter  of  a  quaint  little  castle-like  fort  known 
as  "Little  Morro, "  and  as  there  is  a  good  hotel 
here,  the  visitor  may  spend  several  days  at  Cojimar 
and  enjoy  the  cool  sea  breezes  and  the  bathing. 

Another  short  trip  is  by  electric  train  to  Mari- 
anao,  where  there  is  a  splendid  country  club  and 
sea  bathing,  or  one  may  continue  on  to  Guanajay, 
or  even  into  the  rich  tobacco  district  of  Pinar  del 
Rio;  while  another  interesting  trip  is  that  to 
Madruga,  among  the  hills  southeast  of  Havana, 
and  from  whose  springs  the  famous  Copey  water  of 
the  island  is  obtained. 


322  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Guines,  not  far  distant,  is  in  a  vast  sugar  dis- 
trict, and  many  Americans  have  settled  in  the 
vicinity.  It  was  between  Guines  and  Havana  that 
the  first  railway  in  Cuba  was  established  in  1834,  and 
which  was  in  actual  use  in  1837,  years  before  many 
of  our  largest  towns  had  been  weaned  from  the 
pony  express  and  the  lumbering  stage  coach.  The 
first  locomotive  used  on  this  pioneer  railway  is 
still  in  existence,  carefully  preserved  in  the  huge 
Central  Station  in  Havana,  and  forming  a  wonder- 
ful contrast  to  the  huge  Mogul  locomotives  of 
Cuban  railways  of  to-day,  and  which  stand, 
panting,  at  the  heads  of  long  trains  of  Pullman 
coaches  within  a  few  yards  of  their  miniature 
predecessor. 

Still  another,  and  the  most  fascinating  of  all 
short  trips,  is  that  to  Matanzas  and  the  famous 
Yumuri  Valley.  Matanzas  is  but  sixty-three  miles 
from  Havana  and  readily  accessible,  as  four  trains 
leave  Havana  daily  for  the  town.  Its  beautiful  situ- 
ation, its  wonderful  caves,  its  tropical  verdure,  and 
its  quaint  foreign  appearance  have  made  this  north- 
ern coast  town  a  veritable  Mecca  for  excursionists 
and  travelers.  The  railway  passes  through  charm- 
ingly interesting  country,  first  vast  cane  fields,  then 
through  rolling  hills,  hence  through  a  deep  gorge 
dense  with  tropical  foliage,  ferns,  and  flowers,  and 
finally  across  the  fertile  San  Juan  Valley,  rich  with 
orange  orchards  and  with  green  hills  on  either  side, 


CUBA  323 

while  far  ahead  the  solitary  majestic  peak  or 
"pan"  of  Matanzas  towers  far  above  the  town. 

Matanzas  is  low,  its  highest  point  scarce  one 
hundred  feet  above  the  sea,  and  it  is  divided  into 
three  parts  by  the  San  Juan  and  Yumuri  rivers. 
Each  portion  is  known  by  a  different  name,  that 
section  lying  between  the  two  streams  being 
Old  Town  or  "Pueblo  Vie  jo, "  that  on  the  northern 
bank  of  the  Yumuri  being  called  Versailles,  while 
that  on  the  south  bank  of  the  San  Juan  is  ' '  Pueblo 
Nuevo"  or  New  Town. 

There  are  many  important  and  notable  build- 
ings in  Matanzas,  such  as  the  Governor's  Palace, 
the  Cuban  Club,  the  Spanish  Club,  and  the 
Gran  Hotel,  all  of  which  are  built  on  or  near 
the  lovely  Plaza  de  Libertad,  while  in  the  Ver- 
sailles section  are  many  magnificent  mansions 
as  well  as  the  Paseo  Marti,  a  beautiful  boulevard 
much  like  Havana's  prado  in  miniature.  Even 
more  pretentious  and  beautiful  are  the  princely 
residences  of  the  wealthy  Matanzans  in  New  Town, 
veritable  palaces  of  every  color  of  the  rainbow, 
with  enormous  porticoes,  marble  columns,  immense 
patios,  and  superb  gardens. 

But  with  all  the  attractions  of  Matanzas  the 
real  interest  of  the  locality  lies  in  the  Yumuri 
Valley  and  the  Bellamar  Caves. 

The  Yumuri  Valley  has  been  called  the  "Vale 
of  Paradise, "  and  its  beauties  have  been  described 


324  THE  WEST  INDIES 

more  often  than  any  other  spot  in  Cuba,  and  while 
its  loveliness  cannot  be  gainsaid,  yet  it  is  not  so 
large,  so  luxuriant,  nor  so  attractive  as  the  Vega 
Real  of  Santo  Domingo,  or  more  beautiful  than 
many  of  the  vales,  girt  with  towering  mountains, 
in  Porto  Rico.  But  it  can  boast  of  one  attraction 
lacking  in  all  others,  the  Hermitage  of  Monteser- 
rate  upon  the  crest  of  Cumbre  Hill,  a  sacred  shrine 
credited  with  innumerable  miracles. 

Within  are  many  offerings  from  the  faithful, 
and  from  far  and  near  come  pilgrims  hobbling 
on  crutches  or  canes,  slowly,  painfully,  with 
many  a  halt,  climbing  the  steep  hill,  to  return, 
sound  in  limb,  walking  unaided  and  erect,  their 
canes  and  crutches  left  within  the  Hermitage  as 
testimony  to  the  wondrous  powers  of  the  Lady  of 
Monteserrate. 

In  a  hill,  about  two  miles  from  Matanzas,  are 
the  Caves  of  Bellamar,  no  whit  less  famous  than 
the  Yumuri  Valley,  and  which  were  first  discovered 
accidentally  by  a  Chinese  laborer  who  lost  his 
crowbar  through  a  hidden  crevice  beneath  the 
earth  where  he  was  working. 

The  caverns  are  entered  through  a  small  building 
and  by  a  broad  stairway  cut  in  the  rock  and  are 
illuminated  by  electricity,  and  the  lights,  glinting 
and  glistening  upon  the  countless  crystalline 
stalactites,  present  a  wonderful  and  beautiful 
effect. 


CUBA  325 

Although  not  as  large  as  the  Luray  or  the  Mam- 
moth Cave,  yet  the  caves  of  Bellamar  extend  for 
over  four  miles,  are  one  hundred  feet  and  more 
in  height,  and  are  far  more  beautiful  than  our 
gigantic  caves  in  the  perfection  of  their  formations. 
The  perfect  domed  roofs,  hung  with  stalactites 
like  pendant  banners,  the  enormous  columns, 
reaching  from  floor  to  ceiling,  and  the  marvelously 
sparkling,  prismatic  character  of  the  dripstone, 
excel  any  caverns  in  the  United  States.  The 
first  and  largest  of  the  chambers,  the  so-called 
Gothic  Temple,  is  nearly  250  feet  in  length  by 
75  feet  in  width,  and,  in  addition,  there  are 
numerous  smaller  chambers,  halls,  passages,  and 
grottoes  with  subterranean  rivers,  deep,  awesome 
chasms,  and  natural  bridges  of  stone. 

Should  the  visitor  to  Cuba  elect  to  travel  farther 
along  the  northern  shores  of  the  island  he  will  find 
many  a  pretty  town,  much  lovely  scenery,  and 
many  interesting  spots.  First  beyond  Matanzas 
is  Cardenas,  one  hundred  miles  from  Havana  and 
a  modern  thriving  city,  famous  in  the  annals 
of  our  brief  war  with  Spain  as  the  scene  of  the 
first  American  fatalities  of  the  conflict,  when 
Ensign  Bagley  and  four  seamen  were  killed  dur- 
ing an  engagement  on  May  n,  1890.  North  of 
the  town  is  a  very  attractive  seashore  resort,  the 
Varadero,  with  many  attractive  villas  and  summer 
homes  along  the  shore. 


326  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Eastward,  about  seventy  miles  from  Cardenas, 
is  Sagua  la  Grande,  an  extremely  picturesque 
town,  built  partly  on  piles  like  Batabano,  and 
which  is  the  "farthest  north"  town  in  Cuba.  Off 
the  shore  are  numerous  islets,  or  cays,  the  summer 
homes  of  prominent  Cubans,  and  on  one  of  which, 
Cayo  Christo,  the  President  of  Cuba  has  a  resi- 
dence. Still  continuing  eastward,  Caibarien  is 
reached,  an  important  shipping  port  connected  by 
railway  with  interior  towns. 

Nuevitas,  the  next  port,  is  a  very  old  town,  the 
terminus  of  a  railway  to  Camaguey  in  the  interior, 
and  mainly  of  interest  as  being  the  port  of  La 
Gloria,  the  most  flourishing  as  well  as  the  pioneer 
American  colony  in  Cuba. 

Next  comes  Vita,  a  shipping  port  of  the  sugar 
district  and  with  a  wonderful  landlocked  harbor, 
and  beyond  is  Gibara,  a  quaint  and  very  ancient 
Spanish  town  and  one  of  the  few  Cuban  towns 
which  is  still  as  fascinatingly  old-fashioned  and 
Oriental  as  before  the  Spanish  War. 

Charmingly  picturesque  is  Gibara,  with  its 
brilliantly  colored  buildings  against  the  steep 
green  hillside  above  the  crescent-shaped  bay,  and 
flanked  by  comic-opera  blockhouses  and  topped  by 
the  great  yellow  cathedral  among  the  palms.  More- 
over it  is  a  spot  of  great  historic  interest,  for  it  was 
the  first  place  touched  at  by  Columbus  when  he 
discovered  Cuba  in  1492,  and  the  triple  mountains, 


CUBA  327 

mentioned  in  his  journal  as  the  "Silla, "  the  "Pan, " 
and  the  "Tabla, "  still  loom  as  prominently  and 
impressively  beyond  the  town  as  on  that  day  424 
years  ago;  their  lower  slopes,  verdure  clad  and 
green,  their  summits,  naked  and  precipitous,  like 
three  great  fangs,  gleaming  golden  in  the  sunlight. 

Nipe  Bay,  with  Saetia  amid  its  pineapple  plan- 
tations, Preston,  the  United  Fruit  Company 
town,  and  Felton,  the  shipping  port  of  the  vast 
iron  mines,  lie  just  beyond  Gibara,  and  here  one 
finds  the  great,  busy,  modern  port,  Antilla,  the 
terminus  of  an  important  branch  of  the  Cuba 
Central  Railway  and  the  third  most  important 
seaport  of  Cuba. 

Only  a  few  years  ago  Nipe  Bay  was  the  lonely, 
almost  unknown,  haunt  of  fishermen,  smugglers, 
and  filibusters,  but  to-day  the  wonderful  natural 
harbor  is  filled  with  great  steamships  from  far  and 
near,  about  the  shores  are  numerous  flourishing  up- 
to-date  towns  with  American  hotels,  factories,  and 
industries,  while  all  about,  the  forests  of  cabinet 
woods,  the  fertile  fruit  and  cane  lands,  and  the 
mountains  of  valuable  ores  are  pouring  their  wealth 
into  the  mushroom-like  port,  which  is  already 
second  only  to  Havana  in  prosperity  and  progress. 

Last  of  the  northern  coast  towns  of  Cuba  is 
Baracoa  upon  the  borders  of  a  landlocked  harbor 
beneath  the  shadow  of  the  Yunque  Mountain 
which  towers  for  two  thousand  feet  above  the 


328  THE  WEST  INDIES 

town.  Discovered  by  Columbus  in  1492,  this 
lovely  spot  so  attracted  the  great  navigator  that  he 
declared  in  his  journal  that  "a  thousand  tongues 
could  not  suffice  to  describe  the  things  I  saw  here 
of  novelty  and  beauty,  for  it  was  all  like  a  scene 
of  enchantment."  Oldest  of  Cuba's  towns  is 
Baracoa,  for,  lured  by  the  glowing  words  of  Colum- 
bus, hither  came  Diego  Velasquez  in  1511  to 
found  a  settlement.  The  fort  he  built  so  long 
ago  still  stands  above  the  town,  but  the  city  has 
changed  much,  for,  despite  its  isolation,  it  is  a  busy 
modern  place  and  a  shipping  port  for  millions  of 
cocoanuts  and  countless  thousands  of  bunches  of 
bananas. 

So  numerous  are  its  ports  that  Cuba  has  been 
called  "the  island  of  one  hundred  harbors,"  and 
this  is  no  exaggeration,  for  both  the  northern  and 
southern  coasts  are  dotted  with  towns,  many  of 
which  are  important  shipping  ports. 

Nearest  to  Havana,  on  the  south,  is  Batabano, 
the  "Little  Venice"  of  Cuba,  a  village  on  stilts 
and  mainly  inhabited  by  spongers  and  fishermen 
and  of  importance  as  the  port  from  which  steam- 
ers sail  for  the  Isle  of  Pines.  Fifty  miles  of 
shallow  water  separate  this  much-exploited  and 
over-estimated  island  from  Batabano  and,  unless 
one  is  desirous  of  looking  over  the  ground  with  an 
eye  to  investment,  there  is  little  reason  for  visiting 
the  Isle  of  Pines.  But  it  is  a  delightful  sail  across 


CUBA  329 

the  gulf,  over  a  wonderful  sea,  so  clear  and  shallow 
that  the  multicolored,  coral-paved  bottom  may  be 
plainly  viewed,  and,  moreover,  the  isle  affords 
excellent  bathing,  many  delightful  drives,  and  good 
fishing. 

Discovered  by  Columbus,  who  named  it  Evan- 
gelista,  the  Isle  of  Pines — so-called  because  of  its 
extensive  pine  forests — was  considered  practically 
worthless  by  the  Spaniards  and  was  abandoned  to 
pirates,  smugglers,  and  buccaneers,  while  convicts 
sent  there  by  the  Spaniards  added  to  the  choice 
collection  of  its  inhabitants.  It  cannot  be  denied 
that  there  is  some  good  land  in  the  Isle  of  Pines, 
that  the  climate  is  healthy  and  delightful,  and  that, 
as  a  winter  residence  for  Northerners,  the  isle 
is  all  that  has  been  claimed  for  it,  but,  like  many 
another  land  and  colonization  scheme,  the  possi- 
bilities of  the  Isle  of  Pines  have  been  terribly 
exaggerated. 

Its  total  area  is  but  half  a  million  acres  and 
over  one  third  of  this  is  worthless,  annually 
inundated,  swampy  and  flinty,  wretched  moun- 
tains, while  much  of  the  remainder  is  barren  pine- 
land.  Even  the  fertile  portions  are  often  parched 
and  dry  during  some  of  the  year  and  are  flooded 
at  other  seasons. 

Moreover  the  transportation  facilities  to  the 
world's  markets  are  poor,  the  best  soil  requires 
fertilizing,  and  there  is  not  a  single  advantage 


330  THE  WEST  INDIES 

or  attraction  possessed  by  the  Isle  of  Pines  which 
cannot  be  found  to  much  greater  extent  and 
under  more  favorable  conditions  in  Cuba  or 
Porto  Rico. 

But  the  roads  are  excellent,  much  of  the  scenery 
is  attractive,  there  are  large  modern  hotels  and 
many  charming  residences  on  the  isle,  and  the 
majority  of  the  well-to-do  inhabitants  are 
Americans. 

Unquestionably  many  of  the  colonists  have 
made  money  on  the  Isle  of  Pines,  and,  beyond  a 
doubt,  many  more  will  succeed  and  prosper,  but 
many  more  have  failed  and  have  lost  their  all 
through  misleading  and  false  representations  and 
have  worked  their  way  home,  sadder  but  wiser 
men,  while  still  others  remain  stranded  on  the 
isle  and  in  Cuba,  and  are  compelled  to  work  at 
menial  labor  to  earn  their  daily  bread. 

Aside  from  limited  agricultural  possibilities, 
the  resources  of  the  Isle  of  Pines  are  few  and 
scarcely  exploited.  There  are  marble  quarries 
in  the  hills,  forests  of  cedar,  mahogany,  and  pine 
in  the  mountains,  and  there  are  numerous  mineral 
springs,  the  water  from  which  is  bottled  and  sold 
in  large  quantities  in  Cuba. 

Eastward  from  Batabano  is  Jagua  Bay, — one  of 
the  finest  harbors  in  the  world, — and  six  miles 
from  the  entrance,  upon  a  gentle  slope  of  wondrous 
green,  is  Cienfuegos.  Strangely  named  was  this 


CUBA  331 

city,  for  Columbus,  viewing  the  spot  at  night  and 
seeing  the  flashing  lights  of  countless  fireflies, 
exclaimed,  "Mira  los  cienfuegos!"  (Behold  the 
hundred  fires !) 

One  of  the  best  of  Cuba's  towns  is  Cienfuegos, 
as  well  as  one  of  the  most  modern,  for  it  was  not 
founded  until  1819  and  was  completely  rebuilt 
in  1825,  after  its  destruction  by  a  hurricane. 
Second  only  to  Havana,  from  a  commercial  stand- 
point, and  first  of  all  Cuban  ports  in  its  sugar 
shipments,  Cienfuegos  is  a  wealthy,  prosperous, 
progressive  city  with  wide  straight  streets,  electric 
lights,  and  every  improvement. 

The  plaza  is  noted  for  its  beauty  and  is  guarded 
by  two  great  marble  lions,  presented  by  Queen 
Isabella  of  Spain,  while  facing  it  is  the  massive 
cathedral  within  which  is  a  wonderful  image 
of  the  Madonna  robed  in  cloth  of  gold  and  royal 
purple,  and  which,  like  the  lions,  is  also  a  gift 
of  the  Spanish  queen. 

Notable  among  the  prominent  buildings  is  the 
great  Terry  Theater,  built  at  a  cost  of  over 
$150,000  by  the  heirs  of  Don  Tomas  Terry, 
one  of  Cuba's  wealthiest  sugar  kings,  and  the 
receipts  from  which  are  devoted  to  the  schools. 

About  the  plaza  centers  the  life  of  the  city,  and 
here,  on  Sunday  and  Thursday  evenings,  come  the 
beauty  and  wealth — as  well  as  the  ugly  and 
humble — of  the  town,  to  listen  to  the  dreamy  music 


332  THE  WEST  INDIES 

of  the  band  and  to  parade  beneath  the  palms, 
seeing  and  being  seen,  in  true  Spanish-American 
fashion.  In  Havana  few  of  the  women  of  the 
better  class  retain  the  becoming,  picturesque 
dress  of  Spain,  but  in  Cienfuegos  soft  mantillas 
and  fluttering  rebosas  have  not  given  way  to 
Parisian  millinery  and  bizarre  gowns  of  up-to-date 
style,  and  the  Senoras  and  Senoritas  are  still  true  to 
the  flower-bedecked  hair,  clinging  laces,  high 
combs,  and  bewitching  costumes  of  their  ancestors. 

Cienfuegos  itself  is  rather  too  hot  for  comfort 
during  the  day,  although  the  climate  is  healthy 
enough,  but  about  the  borders  of  the  bay  are 
villas  and  suburbs  which  are  cool  and  breezy,  and 
here  the  well-to-do  residents  dwell,  amid  a  Para- 
dise of  tropic  foliage,  with  the  turquoise  waters 
of  the  bay  stretching  across  to  smooth  green 
fields,  beyond  which  rise  the  opalescent,  distant 
mountains. 

All  about  Cienfuegos  are  delightful  drives, 
beautiful  scenery,  and  interesting  spots,  such  as 
Habanilla  Falls,  a  lovely  cataract  in  the  most 
luxuriant  of  tropic  verdure,  and  the  Damiju  River, 
flowing  under  arches  of  bamboo,  while  close  at 
hand,  at  the  entrance  to  the  harbor,  is  the  hoary 
old  Castillo  de  Jagua,  a  fortress  built  in  the  reign 
of  Philip  V  and  the  quaintest  and  most  picturesque 
of  all  Cuba's  medieval  structures. 

Trinidad,  the  next  important  port  to  the  east  of 


CUBA  333 

Cienfuegos,  is  the  second  oldest  town  in  Cuba, 
founded  in  1513  by  caballeros  from  Spain,  who 
accompanied  Cortez  on  his  conquest  of  Mexico, 
and  among  whom  was  Puertocarero  who  made 
the  first  voyage  from  New  to  Old  Spain. 

Beyond  Trinidad  is  Jucaro,  of  little  interest 
save  as  the  southern  end  of  the  famous  "trocha. " 
Beyond  here,  and  stretching  for  miles  just  off  the 
coast,  is  a  chain  of  innumerable  islets  or  cays, 
marvelously  beautiful  at  a  distance,  and  called 
by  Columbus  "Las  Jardines  de  la  Reina"  (The 
Gardens  of  the  Queen)  but,  despite  their  beauty, 
untenable  for  any  inhabitants  other  than  spongers 
and  fishermen,  owing  to  the  myriads  of  blood- 
thirsty mosquitoes  with  which  they  are  infested. 

At  the  eastern  end  of  this  chain  of  cays  is  the 
Gulf  of  Guacanaybo  into  which  flows  the  great 
Cauto  River,  the  largest  and  most  important 
of  Cuba's  streams  and  which  is  navigable  by  steam- 
boats for  fifty  miles.  Upon  the  eastern  shore  of  this 
great  bay  is  Manzanillo,  a  city  of  twenty  thousand 
inhabitants  and  an  important  port  through  which 
are  exported  the  products  of  a  vast  and  rich 
agricultural  district. 

The  town  is  supplied  with  electric  lights  and 
is  modern  in  every  way,  but  unfortunately  it  is 
very  hot  and  far  from  healthy,  and  its  chief 
interest  to  Americans  lies  in  the  fact  that  it  was 
at  this  spot  that  the  last  shot  of  the  Spanish- 


334  THE  WEST  INDIES 

American  war  was  fired,  while  the  town  was 
barely  saved  from  bombardment  by  the  timely 
signing  of  the  peace  protocol. 

Far  more  interesting  than  the  trip  along  Cuba's 
coasts,  and  affording  a  far  better  opportunity  to 
view  the  island,  is  the  journey  from  Havana  to 
Santiago,  a  distance  of  five  hundred  miles,  by  the 
Cuba  Central  Railway. 

Twenty-four  hours  are  required  for  the  journey, 
but  luxurious  Pullman  cars  are  furnished,  there 
are  restaurants,  hotels,  and  other  accommodations 
en  route,  and  the  trip  is  as  comfortable  and 
pleasant  as  a  trip  on  one  of  our  own  great  railways 
and,  if  desired,  a  stop-over  may  be  made  at 
Camaguey  or  other  points. 

As  the  first  part  of  the  route  is  through  a  flat, 
uninteresting  cane  district  which  extends  as  far 
as  Santa  Clara,  it  is  wisest  to  take  the  evening 
train,  which  leaves  Havana  at  10  P.  M.,  and  thus 
have  the  entire  following  day  amid  the  most 
interesting  and  varied  scenery  and  the  most 
noteworthy  towns  of  the  interior  of  the  island. 

At  daybreak  the  traveler  looks  forth  across  far- 
reaching  fields  of  cane  and  tobacco  above  which 
stretches  a  gossamer  coverlet  of  mist,  like  a  vast 
silver  sea,  from  which  rise  islands  of  bamboo 
and  lofty  palms,  while  half-submerged  in  the  nebu- 
lous sea  are  tiny  huts,  neat  houses,  and  great  sugar 
mills.  Rapidly  the  buildings  become  more  numer- 


CUBA  335 

ous,  cane  and  tobacco  give  way  to  roads  and 
streets,  and,  with  a  rumble  and  roar,  the  train 
pulls  into  Santa  Clara,  184  miles  from  the  capital. 

A  city  of  twenty-five  thousand  inhabitants  is 
Santa  Clara,  a  thriving  modern  town,  in  the 
center  of  a  sugar  and  cattle  district  which  produces 
nearly  one  third  of  all  the  sugar  raised  in  Cuba. 
With  a  healthy  climate,  excellent  hotels  and 
restaurants,  and  noted  for  the  beauty  of  its  women, 
Santa  Clara  has  many  attractions.  It  is  lit  with 
electricity,  it  possesses  a  splendid  water  supply, 
the  streets  are  smooth  and  level,  there  are  many 
notable  buildings,  and  the  town  possesses  a  famous 
theater,  the  "Teatro  de  la  Caridad, "  which  was 
presented  to  the  city  by  a  native  lady,  and  the 
entire  proceeds  of  which,  like  those  of  the  Terry 
Theater  in  Cienfuegos,  are  devoted  to  the  public 
schools. 

The  cathedral  is  also  notable,  and  within  it  is  a 
picture  of  the  Madonna  which  has  hung  in  the 
same  spot  for  over  two  hundred  years. 

But,  unless  the  traveler  decides  to  stop  over  in 
the  town,  there  is  little  opportunity  to  see  its  sights, 
and  the  train  soon  moves  slowly  out  of  the  station 
and  rushes  eastward  across  the  level  lands  towards 
Placetas  del  Sur.  Here  a  branch  line  leads  to 
Caibarien  and  northern  coast  ports,  while  to  the 
south  is  the  Manicaragua  Valley,  famous  for 
its  superior  tobacco. 


336  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Zaza  del  Medio,  237  miles  from  Havana,  is  the 
next  stop,  a  beautifully  situated  little  town  on  the 
banks  of  the  Zaza  River.  Here  the  flat  cane  and 
grazing  district  is  left  behind  and  all  about  are 
beautiful  rolling  hills,  checkered  with  tobacco  fields 
and  gardens,  separated  by  groves  of  royal  palms 
and  poinciana  trees,  while  between  the  hills 
stretch  lush  grassy  llanuras  cut  by  the  great,  wind- 
ing, silvery  river. 

From  Zaza  a  railway  leads  to  Sancti  Spiritus, 
seven  miles  south,  and  which,  founded  in  1514,  had 
become  so  rich  by  1667  that  it  attracted  the 
attention  of  pirates  who  invaded  the  town,  "much 
to  the  detriment  of  the  persons  and  properties 
of  its  inhabitants, "  as  stated  by  the  historian 
Pezuela.  Still  later,  in  1719,  Sancti  Spiritus  was 
again  looted  by  French  and  British  pirates  from 
the  Bahamas,  and,  on  various  other  occasions  sinee 
then,  the  "persons  and  properties  of  its  inhabit- 
ants"  have  suffered  from  warfare,  revolutions,  and 
bandits. 

Onward  from  Zaza,  past  many  small  towns,  the 
train  rushes  eastward  through  a  rich  and  beautiful 
country  where  forests  of  cabinet  woods  clothe 
the  hillsides,  while  above  the  tobacco  they  will 
one  day  box  rise^  magnificent  trees  of  Spanish 
cedar. 

At  Ciego  de  Avila,  280  miles  from  Havana,  the 
train  crosses  the  famous,  or  infamous,  "trocha, " 


CUBA  337 

a  cleared  barbed-wire  road  constructed  by  the 
Spaniards  across  the  island  from  Jucaro  on  the 
south  to  San  Fernando  on  the  north  coast.  At 
intervals  of  a  kilometer  apart  little  blockhouses, 
or  forts,  were  erected,  and  many  of  these  still 
stand,  dilapidated  and  overgrown,  beside  the  half- 
mile  clearing  which  has  been  converted  into  gar- 
dens, orchards,  and  fields  by  the  Cubans,  who  have 
thus  benefited  by  the  labors  of  their  former  enemies. 

Ciego  itself  is  a  prosperous  little  town,  with 
sawmills  buzzing  noisily  as  they  transform  the 
mahogany  and  cedar  logs  from  the  nearby  forests 
into  cigar  boxes  and  cabinet  wood.  At  this  place 
there  is  an  excellent  railway  restaurant  and  half  an 
hour  is  allowed  for  meals,  which  is  ample  time  to 
eat  and  see  the  town  in  addition. 

Leaving  Ciego,  the  railway  enters  a  district  of 
great  tropical  forests  interspersed  by  broad  smiling 
valleys  and  rich  pasture  lands,  where  herds  of 
cattle  graze,  while  numerous  sawmills  stand  among 
the  trees,  and  acres  of  bananas  and  plantain  trees 
stretch  across  the  clearings. 

Through  many  a  red-tiled  village  and  thatched- 
roof  wayside  settlement,  the  train  thunders ;  over 
many  a  culvert  and  bridge  it  roars,  and  the  whistle 
shrieks  at  many  a  grade  crossing,  while  swarthy 
Cubans,  half-naked  brown  children,  and  fair- 
skinned  northern  settlers  wave  hats  and  hands 
as  the  cars  sweep  past  toward  distant  Santiago. 


338  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Wider  and  larger  become  the  clearings  and  the 
cultivated  lands,  farther  and  farther  apart  are  the 
forests;  broad  fields  of  waving  guinea  grass  take 
the  place  of  banana  portreros,  and  everywhere 
countless  horses  and  great  herds  of  cattle  graze 
upon  the  rolling,  open  prairie  land.  Then,  far 
ahead,  one  sees  a  glimpse  of  twin  church  towers 
against  the  shimmering  blue  sky  and  the  train 
enters  ancient,  picturesque  old  Camaguey. 

Upon  a  high  interior  plain,  seven  hundred  feet 
above  the  sea,  is  the  city  of  Camaguey,  and  this 
altitude,  combined  with  the  trade  wind  sweeping 
in  from  the  north,  gives  to  the  locality  a  cool, 
delightful,  healthy  climate.  And  as  perfect  as 
its  climate  is  Camaguey 's  situation  upon  the  gently 
rolling  plain  dotted  with  palms  and  trees,  cut  by 
streams,  luxuriant  with  verdure,  and  with  the 
purple-shadowed  mountains  looming  in  the  dis- 
tance. 

Very  old  is  Camaguey  and,  despite  all  its  modern 
improvements  and  twentieth-century  progress, 
it  looks  its  age  and  is  full  of  picturesque,  Old- 
World  nooks  and  byways,  crooked,  roughly 
paved  streets,  rambling  squat  buildings,  heavy 
stone  cornices,  red-tiled  roofs,  projecting  iron 
window-grills  of  antique  design,  and  dark  court- 
yards which  give  a  most  Oriental,  Moorish  appear- 
ance to  the  town. 

Originally  built  upon  the  northern  coast  near 


CUBA  339 

Nuevitas,  the  town  was  known  as  Puerto  Principe, 
but  within  a  year  of  its  founding,  in  1515,  it  was  so 
ravished  by  pirates  that  the  citizens  were  obliged 
to  pack  up  what  little  the  freebooters  had  left 
them  and  move  inland. 

But  even  this  migration  did  not  prevent  the 
pirates  from  following,  and,  in  1665,  the  city  was 
sacked  by  Morgan,  who  made  a  forced  march 
from  the  coast  and  secured  a  vast  amount  of 
treasure  which  the  inhabitants  had  accumulated 
through  the  cattle  industry.  Many  of  the  people 
were  killed  in  the  raid  and  many  more  perished 
miserably  of  thirst  and  starvation,  for  the  buc- 
caneers drove  all  the  inhabitants  into  the  churches, 
and,  locking  them  up,  left  them  to  starve,  mean- 
while making  merry  on  their  victims'  property 
and  varying  their  diversions  by  butchering  men, 
women,  and  children  who  had  fallen  into  their 
clutches. 

Finally,  having  exhausted  the  supplies  of  the 
city,  the  pirates  departed  for  the  coast  with  five 
hundred  head  of  stolen  cattle  and  a  number  of 
prisoners,  who  were  forced  to  kill  and  dress  the 
animals  for  provisioning  their  captors'  ships. 

One  may  still  see  the  old  churches,  within  which 
the  captives  wailed  out  their  misery  in  the  bloody 
days  when  the  pirates  held  the  city.  La  Merced 
is  one  of  these,  a  structure  with  walls  four  to 
eight  feet  thick  and  built  as  if  to  withstand  a  siege. 


340  THE  WEST  INDIES 

The  altar  of  solid  silver  was  made  from  forty 
thousand  Spanish  dollars,  and  there  is  also  a 
sepulcher  of  beaten  silver,  weighing  five  hundred 
pounds,  containing  an  image  of  Christ  and  which, 
on  Good  Friday,  is  carried  through  the  streets  on 
men's  shoulders. 

Camaguey  is  famous  for  its  churches  and,  in 
addition  to  La  Merced,  there  are  many  others  of 
equal  note,  among  them  La  Soledad,  built  in 
1697,  and  Nuestra  Senora  de  la  Caridad,  near 
which  is  a  remarkable  well,  thirty  feet  in  depth,  with 
a  winding  stairway  leading  down  to  the  surface  of 
the  water,  and  all  hewn  from  the  solid  rock. 

Although  still  called,  at  times,  by  its  original 
name  of  Puerto  Principe,  yet  the  old  Indian 
name  of  Camaguey  is  in  more  general  use  and  is 
much  more  appropriate,  for  "Prince's  Port" 
seems  scarcely  fitting  for  an  interior  town  many 
miles  from  the  sea. 

Since  the  evacuation  of  the  island  by  the  Span- 
iards, Camaguey  has  become  a  very  important 
progressive  city,  largely  owing  to  the  fact  that  the 
Cuban  Railway  has  established  its  headquarters 
here  and,  in  addition,  maintains  one  of  the  finest 
hotels  in  Spanish  America.  The  Hotel  Camaguey 
was  originally  a  cavalry  and  infantry  barracks 
of  the  Spanish  troops  and,  with  an  area  of  nearly 
five  acres,  was  capable  of  housing  two  thousand 
soldiers, 


CUBA  341 

Remodeled  and  renovated  and  with  sanitary 
plumbing,  artesian  wells,  electric  lights,  and  every 
up-to-date  convenience,  the  massive  old  building 
has  been  transformed  into  a  modern  and  most 
attractive  hotel,  with  lovely  patios  filled  with 
palms,  shade  trees,  vines,  and  flowers,  and  yet  with 
all  of  its  quaint  old  Moorish  architectural  features 
retained. 

The  streets  of  the  city,  though  often  narrow, 
and  as  rocky  as  the  proverbial  road  to  Dublin, 
are  clean  and  well  kept ;  there  are  beautiful  parks 
and  plazas,  trolley  cars  and  electric  lights,  and  the 
water  supply  is  from  artesian  wells.  With  its 
modernity  on  the  one  hand  and  its  quaint,  Old- 
World  charms  on  the  other,  its  ideal  climate  and  its 
beautiful  situation,  the  interesting  town  should 
prove  a  most  delightful  winter  resort,  especially 
as  many  of  the  planters  in  the  vicinity  are  Ameri- 
cans and  English  is  more  generally  spoken  in 
Camaguey  than  in  any  other  Cuban  city. 

All  about  Camaguey  is  a  marvelously  rich 
agricultural  and  grazing  district,  with  great  fruit 
and  truck  gardens,  ranches  containing  thousands 
of  acres,  immense  herds  of  cattle,  and  vast  tracts  of 
valuable  timber,  the  whole  forming  one  of  the  most 
alluring  and  promising  districts  of  Cuba  and  with 
its  resources  scarcely  touched  as  yet. 

Through  this  rich  upland  plain  the  train  con- 
tinues its  journey  to  Marti,  at  the  junction  of  the 


342  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Bayamo,  San  Luis,  and  Manzanillo  lines,  a  town 
named  in  honor  of  Cuba's  martyred  patriot. 
Fifty  miles  farther  east  is  Las  Tunas,  famous  as 
the  scene  of  a  most  remarkable  victory  won  by 
General  Garcia's  force  of  six  hundred  men  against 
tremendous  odds  and  in  which  General  Frederick 
Funston  took  a  conspicuous  part  as  officer  in 
charge  of  the  Cuban  artillery. 

At  the  close  of  the  war  not  a  house  or  building 
remained  standing  in  Las  Tunas,  but  the  town 
was  rapidly  rebuilt,  and  to-day  it  is  a  prosperous 
modern  little  place  surrounded  by  over  one 
thousand  acres  of  citrus  fruit  orchards  owned  by 
American  and  Canadian  colonists. 

Beyond  Las  Tunas,  the  open  grassy  and  agricul- 
tural district  rapidly  gives  place  to  forest-covered 
land,  with  the  mighty  trees  crowding  close  beside 
the  tracks  and  with  every  little  station  surrounded 
by  huge  piles  of  cedar,  mahogany,  locust,  and 
lignum- vitas  logs. 

For  mile  after  mile  and  hour  after  hour  the 
train  tears  through  the  interminable  forests,  while 
long  shadows  creep  among  the  trees,  until,  when 
Alto  Cedro  is  reached,  darkness  is  descending  on 
the  land. 

At  Alto  Cedro,  491  miles  from  Havana,  a  stop  of 
twenty-five  minutes  is  made  to  enable  passengers 
to  dine  at  the  station  restaurant,  and  the  traveler 
grudges  the  delay,  as  the  rapidly  approaching 


CUBA  343 

night  hides  the  wild,  sublime  scenery  that  stretches 
beyond  the  town. 

Soon  only  twinkling  lights  mark  the  little 
villages  which  flit  rapidly  past  the  windows, 
while  the  train  whirls  swiftly  through  the  soft  tropic 
night  and  enters  a  narrow  pass  in  the  sky-piercing 
Maestra  Mountains.  Roaring  over  spider-web-like 
bridges,  skirting  the  verges  of  velvet-black  canons, 
circling  precipitous  cliffs,  and  crawling  through 
ravines  the  train  at  last  flashes  by  the  lights 
of  scattered  houses,  and  slowly,  with  grinding 
brakes,  comes  to  the  end  of  its  run  in  the  station 
at  Santiago. 

Picturesque,  quaint,  historic,  hilly,  hot,  and 
fascinating  is  Santiago,  a  city  without  a  counter- 
part in  the  New  World,  and  utterly  charming 
despite  its  torrid  temperature  and  its  everlast- 
ingly precipitous,  breath-exhausting  streets.  Even 
under  Spanish  rule,  Santiago  was  a  fascinating 
spot,  but  now  that  the  dirt,  filth,  and  odors  of  those 
days  have  gone  forever,  now  that  the  rough  and 
cobbled  byways  have  been  replaced  with  asphalt 
and  macadam  pavements;  with  trolley  cars  thread- 
ing the  ancient  thoroughfares,  with  water  which  one 
may  drink  without  fear  of  sudden  death  or  linger- 
ing sickness,  and,  more  important  than  all,  now 
that  there  is  a  good  hotel  in  the  town,  Santiago 
has  become  doubly  attractive. 

Girt  round  by  rugged  wooded  mountains,  re- 


344  THE  WEST  INDIES 

pletc  with  wild  tropic  scenery,  with  its  wonderful 
harbor,  its  ancient  houses  and  steep  fantastic 
streets,  Santiago  de  Cuba  is  beautiful  to  see  and 
possesses  an  atmosphere  and  individuality  of  its 
own. 

From  the  verge  of  the  blue  harbor,  with  palm- 
embowered  Marine  Park  stretching  along  the  shore, 
the  picturesque  city  climbs  up  the  hillsides  in  tier 
after  tier  of  pink,  blue,  green,  white,  and  piebald 
buildings,  red-tiled  roofs,  and  waving  palms;  the 
whole  culminating  in  the  great  cathedral,  while 
everywhere  meander  the  narrow  crooked  streets, 
in  many  places  carried  from  block  to  block  in 
the  form  of  flights  of  steps. 

And  added  to  all  its  other  attractions  is  its 
interesting  history,  for  Santiago  was  for  many 
years  the  capital  and  most  important  town  in 
Cuba;  it  has  passed  through  many  a  siege,  through 
many  stormy  times,  and  up  and  down  its  steep 
thoroughfares  has  passed  many  a  famous  man — 
many  a  one  who  helped  build  the  glory  of  New 
Spain. 

Here  in  Santiago  lived  Velasquez,  founder  of 
Cuba,  and  here  he  died  and  was  buried  in  1522. 
Here,  too,  dwelt  Cortez,  within  a  house  still  stand- 
ing on  the  hill,  a  squat,  one-story,  tiled-roof 
dwelling  from  whose  wooden-grilled  windows  a 
glorious  view  of  mountains,  town,  and  harbor  is 
outspread.  Even  a  more  interesting  character  of 


CUBA  345 

history  has  lived  here  in  old  Santiago — Bartholo- 
mew Las  Casas,  chronicler  of  Columbus's  voyages, 
friend  of  the  Indians,  the  director  of  the  first 
university  on  American  soil,  and  the  most  wonder- 
ful, the  most  glorious,  and  the  most  revered  figure 
of  those  romantic,  reckless,  adventurous,  cruel 
years  of  the  conquest  of  the  New  World. 

And  in  Santiago,  in  later  years,  dwelt  Doctor 
Antomarchi,  the  physician  who  was  at  Napo- 
leon's bedside  when  the  ill-starred  emperor  died  in 
St.  Helena,  and  in  Santiago's  quiet  cemetery  he 
lies  buried,  a  victim  of  yellow  fever,  as  stated  on 
the  monument  above  his  grave. 

In  Santiago,  too,  was  the  first  school  in  Cuba, 
established  in  1522,  and  on  the  site  of  this  ancient 
institution  now  stands  a  modern  American  school, 
a  model  in  every  way,  which  was  built  at  a  cost 
of  $50,000,  half  of  which  was  donated  by  Mr. 
H.  L.  Higginson  of  Boston. 

Throughout  the  world  the  name  of  Adelina  Patti 
is  known  to  fame,  her  voice  has  charmed  countless 
thousands  in  the  greatest  theaters  and  opera- 
houses  of  every  land,  but  how  many  who  have 
thrilled  at  her  music  know  that  it  was  in  quaint 
old  Santiago  that  she  first  appeared  in  public? 
But  such  was  the  case,  and  near  the  plaza  stands 
the  Filarmonia  Theater  where,  at  the  age  of  four- 
teen, she  made  her  debut  in  the  ancient,  out-of-the- 
world  Cuban  town. 


346  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Dark  deeds  have  taken  place  in  Santiago  also. 
'Twas  here  the  Spaniards  shot  the  captain  and 
the  men  of  the  Virginius  in  1873,  and,  to  add  insult 
to  the  butchery,  killed  the  Americans  in  the  public 
slaughter  house  where  a  monument  now  marks 
the  spot  with  the  inscription:  "You  who  pass  here 
uncover  your  heads.  It  is  consecrated  earth. 
For  thirty  years  it  has  been  blessed  by  the  blood 
of  patriots  sacrificed  to  tyranny. " 

Aside  from  its  history,  its  associations  with 
bloody  deeds,  and  its  foreign  atmosphere,  Santiago 
holds  much  of  interest.  There  is  the  Alameda, 
or  park,  along  the  water-front,  the  resort  of  Santi- 
ago's fashionable  folk  in  the  cool  of  the  afternoon 
and  on  Sundays;  the  plaza  with  its  cathedral, 
which  is  the  largest  on  the  island,  with  twin  towers, 
massive  dome,  and  enormous  nave,  while  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  plaza  are  the  Carlos  Club,  the 
Casa  Grande  Hotel,  the  Municipal  Buildings, 
and  the  famous  Venus  Restaurant.  Here,  above 
the  town,  the  air  is  cool  and  fresh  after  sundown, 
and  the  visitor  may  sit  in  the  shade  and  listen  to 
the  band  as  "all  the  world  and  his  wife"  pasears 
about  the  paths  and  drives,  while  stretching 
from  one's  feet  to  the  harbor,  and  twinkling  with 
innumerable  lights,  lies  the  town,  like  a  gigantic 
fan  set  with  scintillating  gems. 

About  Santiago  are  many  spots  made  famous 
by  our  war  with  Spain  and  all  are  within  easy 


CUBA  347 

reach.  Scarce  three  miles  from  the  town  and 
accessible  by  an  electric-car  line  is  San  Juan  Hill 
and  its  battlefield,  El  Caney  and  the  Peace  Tree, 
and  from  the  last  a  splendid  view  is  obtained 
of  the  route  followed  by  the  American  troops  and 
the  country  round  about  made  memorable  by  the 
war. 

Another  trip  of  great  interest  is  to  Cobre  and  its 
copper  mines,  to  the  west  of  Santiago,  and  reached 
by  the  company's  steamer  over  the  bay  and  hence 
by  private  railway  through  wonderful  scenery  to 
the  mines.  For  centuries  the  Cobre  mines  have 
been  worked  with  little  diminution  in  their  rich- 
ness, and  while  they  are  well  worth  seeing,  yet  the 
greatest  attraction  of  the  district  is  the  famous 
Virgin,  known  as  "Nuestra  Sefiora  de  la  Cari- 
dad, "  an  image  credited  with  miraculous  powers 
which  has  been  at  Cobre  for  nearly  three  centuries. 

Strangely  romantic  is  the  story  of  the  Virgin  of 
Cobre,  and  thousands  of  pilgrims  flock  each  year  to 
the  shrine  on  the  eighth  of  September,  the  date 
of  her  festival. 

It  was  over  four  hundred  years  ago  that  Alonzo 
dc  Ojeda  bore  an  image  of  the  Virgin  with  him  on 
his  caravel  and  was  shipwrecked  upon  the  southern 
coast  of  Cuba.  Fortunately,  friendly  Indians 
were  near  at  hand,  and  Ojeda's  life  was  saved  by 
the  Cacique  and,  in  token  of  his  gratitude,  the 
Spaniard  gave  the  wooden  Virgin  to  the  Indian 


348  THE  WEST  INDIES 

chief.  Within  a  rude  shrine,  erected  by  the 
savages,  the  Virgin  was  placed,  and  before  it  the 
Indians  prostrated  themselves  in  adoration,  until 
one  day  the  image  mysteriously  disappeared. 

One  hundred  years  passed  by  and  the  Virgin 
was  forgotten,  when  a  party  of  Indians  found  the 
lost  image  floating  upon  a  bit  of  plank  in  Nipe 
Bay  and  carried  it  to  their  village  of  Hato,  not 
far  from  Cobre. 

But  three  times  in  succession  the  Virgin  left 
the  spot  unaided  and  each  time  reappeared  upon 
the  summit  of  the  mountain,  and  the  Indians, 
fully  convinced  it  was  her  wish  to  remain  there, 
built  a  shrine  upon  the  eminence.  That  was  in 
1631,  and  within  that  shrine  the  image  has  re- 
mained until  the  present  day. 

Carved  of  wood,  and  about  eighteen  inches  in 
height,  this  historic  image  is  mounted  within  a 
tabernacle  of  tortoise-shell,  inlaid  with  gold  and 
ivory,  and  is  richly  robed  in  gold  and  decorated 
with  jewels  valued  at  over  $10,000.  Great  as  is 
the  wealth  bestowed  upon  it  the  shrine  at  one  time 
contained  decorations  and  offerings  of  far  greater 
worth,  but  on  a  night  in  May,  1899,  some  sacri- 
legious thief  broke  into  the  shrine  and  robbed 
the  sanctuary  of  gold  and  jewels  valued  at  more 
than  $25,000. 

No  visit  to  Santiago  would  be  complete  without 
a  trip  to  the  Morro,  the  wonderful  medieval  fort- 


CUBA  349 

ress  that  guards  the  narrow  waterway  leading  to 
Santiago's  wondrous  harbor. 

High  on  a  rocky  promontory,  two  hundred  feet 
above  the  beating,  ceaseless  waves,  it  stands,  its 
frowning  walls  fitted  so  closely  to  the.  lofty  cliff 
that  they  appear  a  very  portion  of  the  rock  itself. 
Impregnable  it  seems,  vast,  rock-ribbed,  and  built 
to  endure  for  all  time ;  its  turrets  and  towers  scarce 
altered  «since  the  days  'twas  built,  four  centuries 
ago,  its  quaint  stone  sentry  boxes  overhanging  the 
abyss  above  the  sea.  Hoary  with  great  age, 
battle-scarred,  seamed,  and  lichen-covered,  it  still 
remains  intact  as  ever,  though  countless  tons  of 
shot  and  shell  have  been  hurled  against  its  ram- 
parts, though  storm  and  flood  and  hurricane  and 
battle  have  beat  against  its  mighty  walls  for  ages. 

Thus  it  appears  as  viewed  from  seaward,  as 
strong,  enduring,  and  formidable  as  ever,  but, 
when  seen  from  within  its  walls,  it  is  crumbling 
and  dismantled,  deserted  save  by  a  tiny  garrison, 
and  useful  only  as  a  signal  station. 

Armed  with  a  pass,  the  visitor  may  ramble 
where  he  will  throughout  the  old  castle-fortress, 
and  a  member  of  the  garrison  will  gladly  act  as 
guide  and  point  out  every  place  of  interest  far 
and  near,  for  from  Morro's  lofty  perch  there  is  a 
marvelous  view,  a  panorama  of  the  beautiful 
harbor  and  the  city,  of  the  country  and  the  coast, 
for  many  miles, 


350  THE  WEST  INDIES 

Close  under  the  wave-worn  cliffs  below  the 
fortress  lies  the  harbor  entrance,  scarce  five  hun- 
dred feet  in  width,  with  La  Socapa  just  across 
the  way,  and  beyond,  the  ancient  battery  on 
Estrella  Point.  Next  comes  Punta  Gorda,  with 
its  scowling  ramparts,  and,  farther  on,  the  hilly 
wooded  islet, — Cayo  Smith, — with  red  roofs  peep- 
ing from  the  verdure.  Beyond  this  pretty  spot 
stretches  the  great,  landlocked  purse-shaped  har- 
bor, six  miles  in  length  by  three  miles  wide,  sur- 
rounded by  towering  mountains  and,  at  its  head, 
the  prismatic-hued  city  gleaming  in  the  sun. 

Far  in  the  hazy  east  lies  Daiquiri,  the  landing 
place  of  Shafter's  troops;  beyond  it  is  Guantanamo 
and,  turning  about,  one  looks  across  the  interven- 
ing sun-steeped  land  to  Siboney,  while  stretching 
southward  to  the  shimmering  horizon  sparkles  the 
blue  Caribbean  Sea. 

Out  yonder  on  the  white-capped  waves  once 
rose  and  fell  the  grim  fighting  ships  of  Schley  and 
Sampson ;  under  the  very  walls  on  which  one  stands 
stole  Hobson  on  the  Mcrrimac;  out  through  the 
winding  channel  beneath  one's  feet  swept  Cer- 
vera's  fleet  on  its  way  to  destruction  and,  for  years 
thereafter,  the  burned  and  battered  hulks  strewed 
the  rocky  coast  for  fifty  miles  to  the  west,  mute 
testimonials  to  the  end  of  Spain's  dominion  in  the 
New  World. 


APPENDIX 

GLOSSARY   OF  THE  WEST  INDIES 


APPENDIX 

GLOSSARY  OF  THE  WEST  INDIES 
ANEGADA 

ONE  of  the  British  Virgin  Island  group  situated 
northeast  of  St.  Thomas. 

A  small  island  twelve  miles  in  length  by  two  miles 
in  width  and  known  also  as  the  "Overflowed  Island," 
as  much  of  its  area  is  scarcely  above  sea  level  and 
is  often  submerged  during  storms. 

Population  entirely  black  and  colored. 

Supposed  to  contain  a  great  quantity  of  buried 
pirate  treasure.  Copper  and  silver  ore  deposits  are 
known  to  exist,  but  are  not  worked. 

Discovered  by  Columbus  in  1493.  Later  the  resort 
of  pirates  and  buccaneers. 

No  hotels  or  boarding  houses. 

Reached  by  sailing  boats  from  St.  Thomas  and 
St.  Kitts. 

Language  and  currency  English. 

ANGUILLA 

One  of  the  British  Leeward  Islands  about  sixty 
miles  north  of  St.  Kitts  and  under  jurisdiction  of  the 
latter. 


352  APPENDIX 

Known  sometimes  as  Eel  Island  and  Little  Snake. 
Length  about  sixteen  miles;  width,  three  miles;  area, 
thirty-six  square  miles.  Sterile  for  the  most  part. 

Population  about  three  thousand,  principally 
negroes. 

Cattle  and  ponies  are  raised  and  exported. 

Formerly  a  resort  of  freebooters. 

No  hotels  or  boarding  places. 

Reached  by  packets  from  St.  Kitts. 

Language  and  currency  English. 

ANTIGUA 

Seat  of  government  of  British  Leeward  Island 
Confederation. 

About  fifty  miles  southeast  of  St.  Kitts. 

About  seventy  miles  in  circumference  with  an  area 
of  about  108  square  miles  or  69,000  acres  of  which  half 
are  cultivated. 

Mainly  of  limestone  formation,  low  and  rolling, 
but  with  hills  rising  to  a  height  of  eight  hundred  feet. 
Soil  in  many  places  fertile  but  dry  and  subject  to 
droughts.  In  many  places  exhausted  by  constant 
crops  without  fertilizer  being  used. 

Population  about  fifty  thousand.  Capital  and 
chief  port  St.  John's  with  thirteen  thousand  inhab- 
itants. English  Harbor,  formerly  an  important  naval 
station,  is  situated  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  island 
from  St.  John's,  but  is  not  used  at  present. 

Sugar  is  the  principal  crop,  but  pineapples  are  also 
exported.  Cotton  and  sisal  hemp  have  been  tried 
with  little  success. 


APPENDIX  353 

Climate  healthy  but  dry  and  hot. 

Discovered  by  Columbus  on  his  second  voyage  in 
1493.  Reason  for  name  (Antigua  or  "Ancient") 
unknown.  First  settled  by  the  Spaniards  and  later 
by  French,  but  the  first  permanent  colony  was  estab- 
lished by  the  English  under  Sir  Thomas  Warner  in 
1632. 

Inhabited  by  Caribs  who  were  troublesome,  and  in 
1640  the  governor's  wife  was  kidnaped  by  the  Carib 
chief.  She  was  rescued  by  the  governor,  but,  becoming 
suspicious  of  her  faithfulness,  he  went  insane.  Devas- 
tated by  hurricanes  repeatedly.  After  the  Caribs 
were  driven  from  Antigua  they  continued  to  harass  the 
British  by  forays  from  the  other  islands  until  a  son  of 
Sir  Thomas  Warner,  who  had  become  the  governor, 
massacred  the  Caribs  by  treachery. 

Inviting  them  to  a  feast,  his  men  fell  upon  the  In- 
dians and  butchered  them  to  a  man.  Among  the 
slain  was  Sir  Thomas  Warner's  half-breed  son  who 
was  a  sub-chief  in  command  of  the  Caribs. 

After  this  massacre  the  English  were  subject  to 
attacks  by  the  French,  but  have  maintained  their 
occupancy  to  the  present  time. 

Among  places  of  interest  are  the  Anglican  Church 
and  ancient  cemetery  at  St.  John's;  the  public 
gardens;  Government  House;  leper  hospital;  old 
forts;  English  Harbor,  and  old  dockyard  where  Nel- 
son refitted  his  fleet;  Valley  of  Petrifications ;  sugar 
estates. 

Numerous  boarding  houses  and  one  or  two  fair 
hotels  in  St.  John's.  Saddle  ponies,  motor  cars,  and 

«3 


354  APPENDIX 

carriages,  as  well  as  rowboats,  sailboats,  and  launches, 
may  be  hired. 

Reached  by  Quebec  S.  S.  Co.  (about  nine  days) 
from  New  York.  By  Royal  Mail  (Canadian  Line) 
from  Bermuda,  Halifax,  and  other  islands  and,  under 
normal  conditions,  by  Royal  Mail  Steam  Packet 
Co. 

Language  and  currency  English.  Terms  "dollars 
and  cents"  used  and  five-dollar  Colonial  Bank  Notes 
in  circulation,  as  well  as  notes  of  Royal  Bank  of 
Canada. 

AVES 

There  are  two  islands  of  this  name  in  the  Antilles. 
The  first  is  a  small  islet  about  one  hundred  miles  west  of 
Dominica.  It  is  uninhabited,  scarcely  above  sea  level, 
and  is  the  haunt  of  thousands  of  sea  birds.  Claimed 
by  both  France  and  England.  A  midshipman  of  the 
United  States  Navy,  who  died  during  the  War  of  1812, 
is  buried  on  this  desolate  bit  of  land.  The  other 
Aves  Island  is  one  of  the  "Coast  Islands"  off  the 
northern  coast  of  South  America  and  is  a  dependency 
of  Venezuela.  This  is  the  "Isle  of  Aves"  referred 
to  in  stories  of  pirates.  It  is  of  no  importance  to-day. 

BAHAMAS 

A  group  of  some  three  thousand  islands,  cays,  and 
exposed  reefs  belonging  to  Great  Britain  and  situated 
east  of  Florida  and  north  of  Cuba  and  distant  about 
one  thousand  miles  from  New  York.  Most  westerly 


APPENDIX  355 

island,  Great  Bahama,  off  Jupiter,  Florida.  Most 
easterly,  Grand  Turk,  north  of  Santo  Domingo. 

Total  area  of  group  about  5700  square  miles. 
Highest  land  three  hundred  feet  above  sea.  Of  so- 
called  "coral"  (Aeolian)  limestone  formation  with 
thin  but  fertile  soil  which  supports  a  semi-tropical 
flora  but  is  capable  of  producing  many  tropical  fruits 
and  other  plants. 

Population  about  sixty  thousand,  mainly  colored. 
Capital  and  chief  port,  Nassau,  on  New  Providence 
Island,  with  fifteen  thousand  inhabitants. 

Principal  islands  are  Acklin,  Andros,  Abaco,  the 
Biminis,  the  Caicos,  Cat  Island,  Eleuthera,  Exuma, 
Fortune  Island,  Grand  Bahama,  Great  Inagua,  Grand 
Turk,  Harbor  Island,  Long  Island,  Long  Cay,  Maya- 
guana,  New  Providence,  Ragged  Island,  Rum  Cay, 
and  Watling's.  San  Salvador  Island  is  the  same  as 
Cat  Island. 

Few  of  the  islands  are  populated  and  the  inhabitants 
of  these  are  mainly  negroes  and  half-breeds. 

Principal  products  are  salt,  turtles,  sponges,  sisal 
hemp,  cotton,  cocoanuts,  and  tropical  fruits.  Most 
important  industry,  exploitation  of  islands  as  a  winter 
resort. 

Climate  healthy  and  pleasant  during  the  winter 
months,  but  very  hot  in  summer. 

Discovered  by  Columbus  in  1492,  the  land  first 
sighted  on  his  famous  voyage  being  one  of  the  Ba- 
hamas and  supposedly  either  Watling's  or  San  Salva- 
dor Island,  but  identity  questionable.  First  settled 
by  the  English  under  Captain  Sayles  in  1667  at  New 


356  APPENDIX 

Providence.  Colony  destroyed  and  governor  roasted 
over  a  slow  fire  by  the  Spaniards  a  few  years  later. 
For  many  years  a  resort  of  pirates,  buccaneers,  and 
wreckers.  Wrecking  carried  on  until  within  the  last 
decade  on  outlying  islands.  During  our  Civil  War 
a  famous  resort  and  headquarters  for  blockade 
runners. 

Places  of  interest  are  the  "  Sea  Gardens,"  Hole  in  the 
Wall  on  Abaco;  Glass  Window  at  Eleuthera;  Caverns 
at  Eleuthera;  Cat  or  San  Salvador  Island,  scene  of 
Columbus's  landing  in  Washington  Irving's  works; 
Lake  of  Fire  near  Nassau,  also  called  Waterloo; 
Blue  Hills;  Lake  Killarney;  Lake  Cunningham;  Caves 
on  New  Providence;  Fish  Market;  Sponge  Exchange, 
public  library;  ceibatree;  Government  House;  Statue 
of  Columbus;  Fort  Fincastle;  Queen's  Staircase; 
Fort  Charlotte,  and  Fort  Montague  in  and  about 
Nassau. 

Numerous  hotels  and  boarding  places  at  Nassau 
and  boarding  houses  at  Grand  Turk  and  some  other 
islands. 

Reached  by  Ward  Line  (N.  Y.  &  Cuba  Mail  S.  S. 
Co.)  from  New  York  or  via  Florida  East  Coast  Lines. 

Language  English.  Currency  officially  British  but 
U.  S.  money  widely  used. 

BALICEUX 

One  of  the  Grenadines  between  St.  Vincent  and 
Grenada  in  the  Lesser  Antilles  (Windward  Islands). 
British  and  under  jurisdiction  of  Grenada. 


APPENDIX  357 

BARBADOS 

A  British  possession  and  most  easterly  of  the  West 
Indies  nicknamed  "Little  England"  and  "Bimshire 
Land."  Inhabitants  known  locally  as  "Bims"  or 
"Badians." 

Length  about  twenty-two  miles ;  width  fifteen  miles. 
Of  limestone  formation,  comparatively  low  and  flat, 
but  with  hills  in  Scotland  district  on  eastern  coast 
rising  to  one  thousand  feet  above  the  sea.  No  true 
streams  or  lakes,  but  with  numerous  underground  riv- 
ers and  vast  caverns,  many  of  which  are  unexplored. 
Soil  very  fertile. 

Population  about  200,000  or  nearly  1200  to  the 
square  mile.  The  most  densely  inhabited  spot  in 
the  world  with  exception  of  China. 

Capital,  Bridgetown,  with  about  thirty  thousand 
inhabitants.  Other  important  towns  and  settlements 
are  Holetown,  Hastings  (a  suburb  of  the  capital), 
Martin's  Bay,  Bathsheba,  etc.,  but  the  population 
spreads  so  evenly  over  the  island  that  it  is  difficult  to 
define  the  settlements  or  areas  of  villages. 

Principal  exports,  sugar,  molasses,  and  rum,  but 
many  vegetables  are  exported  to  other  islands,  and 
arrowroot,  cotton,  corn,  etc.,  are  also  raised. 

Climate  exceedingly  healthy  and  pleasant,  winter 
months  average  from  68°-8o°;  summer  from  73°-86°. 
Trade  winds  blow  constantly  and  seldom  uncomfort- 
ably warm.  During  the  summer  severe  thunder- 
storms are  frequent  and  hurricanes  often  occur. 

Discovered  by  the  Spaniards  under  Columbus  and 


358  APPENDIX 

named  (supposedly)  from  the  beard-like  growth  of 
tendrils  on  the  wild  fig  trees  (Barbados  meaning 
"bearded"),  but  this  explanation  is  questionable. 
First  visited  by  the  English  in  1605  when  Sir  Oliver 
Leigh  stopped  at  the  island  in  the  Olive  Blossom. 
Barbados  was  then  uninhabited,  although  Indian 
tools  and  weapons  are  often  found,  and  no  settlement 
was  made  until  1625,  when  two  large  vessels,  under 
command  of  Sir  William  Courteen,  with  forty  emi- 
grants and  eight  negroes,  were  driven  to  Barbados 
by  storms.  A  landing  was  made  at  the  present  site 
of  Holetown  and  a  settlement  named  Jamestown 
established. 

In  1627  the  Earl  of  Carlisle  obtained  a  grant  to  all 
the  Caribbees  from  King  James  and  sent  out  a  Bermu- 
dian  named  Wolferstone  as  governor. 

A  new  settlement  was  started  at  Carlisle  Bay  and 
called  Bridgetown,  from  a  bridge  built  across  the 
inlet  known  to-day  as  the  "Careenage." 

Troubles  arose  between  the  two  parties,  in  which 
the  Jamestown  people  were  defeated. 

The  colony  prospered  and  increased  rapidly,  in  1645 
the  inhabitants  numbering  eighteen  thousand,  which 
in  five  years  increased  to  thirty  thousand,  only  one 
fifth  of  whom  were  negro  slaves.  At  this  period 
many  Royalists  fled  from  England  to  Barbados 
until  the  royalist  party  in  the  island  became  so  power- 
ful that  upon  the  execution  of  Charles  the  First  the 
Barbadians  declared  themselves  subjects  of  Charles 
the  Second. 

Lord  Willoughby,  a  royalist  exile,  was  elected  gov- 


APPENDIX  359 

ernor  and  under  him  the  Barbadians  attempted  to 
resist  an  expedition  sent  against  them  by  Parliament 
in  1651. 

Between  1650  and  1660  a  great  number  of  Irish 
and  Scotch  captives  of  the  Cromwell  wars  were  sent 
to  Barbados  and  sold  as  slaves  at  1500  pounds  of  sugar 
per  head.  They  were  branded  and  mutilated  to  pre- 
vent escape  and  were  treated  with  greater  inhumanity 
and  brutality  than  the  negroes,  but  many  of  them 
managed  to  rise  to  affluence  and  became  planters. 
Locally  known  as  "Red  Legs, "  from  the  fact  that  they 
were  mainly  wearers  of  kilts  with  bare  knees,  these 
white  slaves  of  Barbados  were  looked  upon  with  con- 
tempt even  by  the  blacks.  Many  of  their  descend- 
ants are  living  in  Barbados  to-day  and,  while  free  men 
and  women,  they  are  usually  poverty-stricken,  anaemic, 
listless,  miserable  specimens  of  humanity;  a  condition 
due  very  largely  to  intermarriage  and  the  ravages  of 
the  hookworm. 

Negro  slavery  was  abolished  in  1834,  but  by  then 
the  blacks  had  increased  prodigiously  and  even  by 
the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century  numbered  over 
sixty  thousand. 

Indians  were  also  captured  on  the  other  islands  and 
brought  to  Barbados  as  slaves. 

After  the  Restoration,  Barbados  had  little  excite- 
ment save  for  slave  uprisings  which  were  quelled  by 
gibbeting,  beheading,  burning  alive,  or  otherwise 
torturing  the  leaders. 

In  1751-1752,  George  Washington,  who  was  at 
that  time  a  major  in  the  British  Colonial  Forces,  made 


3<5o  APPENDIX 

a  visit  to  the  island.  This  was  his  only  foreign  voyage, 
and  it  was  made  in  order  to  benefit  his  brother  Law- 
rence, who  was  suffering  with  tuberculosis. 

During  their  stay  in  Barbados  the  Washingtons 
were  exposed  to  smallpox  and  the  "Father  of  his 
Country"  was  taken  ill  with  the  disease  and  did 
not  recover  for  a  month.  No  one  knows  which  house 
the  two  brothers  occupied  in  Barbados,  but  it  was 
near  Bridgetown  and,  judging  by  the  description  in 
George  Washington's  diary,  was  undoubtedly  near  the 
present  barracks  or  at  Hastings. 

Barbados  is  one  of  the  few  islands  of  the  Lesser 
Antilles  which  was  never  invaded  by  a  foreign  foe  and 
which  has  remained  continuously  British  from  the 
first. 

During  the  war  of  1812  the  island  suffered  from 
the  activities  of  American  privateers,  and  in  i8i6the 
worst  negro  uprising  of  her  history  occurred.  The 
mutiny  was  not  quelled  until  vast  areas  of  cane  had 
been  burned,  many  estates  destroyed,  innumerable 
blacks  killed  and  executed,  and  over  five  hundred 
negroes  exiled.  As  a  result  the  whites  have  held  su- 
premacy in  Barbados  and  the  blacks  are  ruled  with  a 
firm  hand. 

Among  the  places  of  interest  on  the  island  are: 
the  Old  Barracks,  Hastings  Rock,  the  Race  Course, 
Holetown,  Queen's  Park,  Belleville,  all  near  Bridge- 
town. The  Barbados  Light  Railway.  The  Crane, 
Bath,  Bathsheba,  Martin's  Bay,  and  other  beautiful 
seaside  resorts  on  the  windward  coast.  Lion  Rock 
at  Gun  Hill.  Animal  Flower  Cave.  Christ  Church, 


APPENDIX  361 

St.  John's  Church,  and  the  tomb  of  the  last  Christian 
King  of  Greece.  Harrington  College.  Codrington 
College.  Farley  Hill  and  Mansion,  Turner's  Hall, 
Wood,  and  Boiling  Spring.  Cole's  Cave,  Hackleton's 
Cliff,  Scotland  district,  sugar  estates,  etc. 

Numerous  excellent  hotels  and  innumerable  board- 
ing places.  Furnished  and  unfurnished  cottages  and 
bungalows  at  Bridgetown,  Hastings,  and  other  towns 
and  at  seaside  resorts.  f 

Carriages,  automobiles,  and  boats  for  hire. 

Reached  by  Quebec  S.  S.  Co.  (about  fourteen 
days)  from  New  York;  also  by  Lampert  and  Holt  Line; 
Booth  Line;  Lloyd  Braziliero  Line,  etc.  By  Royal 
Mail  (Canadian  line)  from  Bermuda,  Halifax,  and 
other  islands,  and  under  normal  conditions  by  various 
French,  German,  Italian,  and  other  ships. 

Language,  English.  Currency  British,  but  terms 
"dollars  and  cents"  almost  universally  used  and  five- 
dollar  Colonial  Bank  notes,  as  well  as  Royal  Bank  of 
Canada  notes,  in  circulation.  U.  S.  money  accepted 
readily. 

BARBUDA 

A  dependency  of  Antigua  and  about  thirty  miles 
north  of  that  island.  Small  and  flat,  about  seventy- 
five  square  miles  in  area. 

Population  about  seven  hundred  blacks  and  a  very 
few  whites. 

Only  town,  Codrington  Village. 

Exports  and  products,  wood,  hides,  skins,  and 
jerked  meat. 


362  APPENDIX 

Formerly  the  property  of  the  Codrington  family, — 
a  sort  of  island  manor.     Well  stocked  with  game. 
No  hotels  or  boarding  places. 
Reached  by  sailboat  from  Antigua. 

BATTOWIA 

One  of  the  Grenadines,  which  see. 
BEATA 

A  small  island  belonging  to  the  Dominican  republic 
and  situated  off  the  southern  coast  of  Santo  Domingo. 
Language,  Spanish.     Currency,  U.  S. 

BECQUIA 

One  of  the  Grenadines  and  under  the  jurisdiction 
of  Grenada.  Wooded  and  with  hills  eight  hundred 
feet  in  height  extending  through  the  island.  Length, 
six  miles;  width,  one  mile. 

Population  mainly  blacks. 

Products,  cattle,  sheep,  goats,  cotton,  and  cocoa. 

Reached  by  packet  boats  from  Grenada. 

Language  and  currency  as  in  Grenada. 

BERMUDA 

A  group  of  nearly  three  hundred  islands,  cays,  and 
reefs  situated  in  the  Atlantic  Ocean  about  750  miles 
southeast  of  New  York  and  six  hundred  miles  east  of 
Charleston,  South  Carolina. 


APPENDIX  363 

Total  area  about  twenty  square  miles.  Low,  flat, 
and  of  so-called  "coral"  formation,  but  in  reality 
composed  entirely  of  wind-drifted,  solidified  beach 
sand.  No  springs,  streams,  or  fresh  water  ponds  on 
the  islands. 

Population  about  18,000.  Capital,  Hamilton,  with 
2300  inhabitants.  St.  George  is  also  an  important 
port  and  was  formerly  the  capital. 

Principal  products  and  exports  are  onions,  potatoes, 
early  vegetables,  Easter  lilies,  and  garden  truck. 

Climate  remarkably  equable,  healthy,  and  pleasant, 
but  damp  and  often  chilly.  Frost  unknown.  Not 
tropical. 

Discovered  by  a  Spaniard,  Juan  Bermudez,  in  1515, 
while  on  a  voyage  from  Spain  to  Cuba  with  a  cargo  of 
hogs.  The  historian,  Oviedo,  was  on  board  the 
vessel — the  Garza — and  recorded  the  discovery. 
Later,  in  1543,  visited  by  Ferdinand  Camelo,  a  Portu- 
guese, who  claimed  possession  but  did  not  remain. 

In  1593  an  Englishman,  Henry  May,  who  was  on 
board  a  privateering  or  pirate  vessel,  was  wrecked  up- 
on the  North  Rocks.  May  and  his  companions  re- 
mained in  Bermuda  for  five  months  and  finally  built 
a  vessel  of  native  cedar  in  which  they  sailed  for  New- 
foundland, where  they  arrived  in  May,  1594. 

In  1609  the  Sea  Venture  with  150  people,  among 
whom  were  Sir  George  Somers  and  Sir  Thomas  Gates, 
sprang  a  leak  during  a  storm  while  en  route  from  Eng- 
land to  Virginia.  To  save  the  ship  she  was  run 
ashore  on  the  Bermudas.  The  shipwrecked  people 
landed  in  July,  1609,  and  saved  a  large  portion  of  the 


364  APPENDIX 

supplies  and  provisions  of  their  vessel.  They  lived 
upon  the  island  until  the  following  May  and  then  set 
out  for  Jamestown  in  two  vessels  they  had  built  of  the 
native  cedar.  Reaching  Virginia  safely  they  found 
the  colony  in  destitute  circumstances,  and  Sir  George 
Somers  decided  to  return  to  Bermuda  for  supplies  and 
sailed  in  the  vessel  built  on  the  islands.  He  died 
soon  after  reaching  Bermuda  and  his  comrades  left  for 
England,  carrying  his  body,  but  leaving  his  heart  in 
Bermuda,  where  it  rests  to-day. 

Three  men  refused  to  leave  the  islands,  however. 
From  the  accounts  of  Somers'  men,  an  English  colony 
was  started  in  Bermuda  in  1612. 

The  three  men  left  had  lived  and  had  discovered  a 
large  amount  of  ambergris,  which  was  at  once  taken 
from  them  by  the  governor  on  his  arrival.  A  settle- 
ment was  made  at  or  near  St.  George  and  named  in 
honor  of  Sir  George  Somers,  the  islands  also  being 
christened  "Somers  Islands"  in  his  memory. 

By  the  end  of  1615  several  vessels  had  arrived  and 
the  colony  numbered  over  three  hundred  souls. 

They  were  prosperous  and  unfortunate  by  turns 
and  suffered  many  hardships  at  the  hands  of  Governor 
Tucker,  but  by  1620  had  grown  to  an  important 
colony,  with  a  general  assembly,  forts,  public  buildings, 
and  roads,  and  a  map  was  published  by  Captain  John 
Smith  in  1624. 

In  1665,  Captain  Wentworth  made  a  piratical  raid 
on  Tortola,  in  the  Virgin  Islands,  and  stole  ninety 
negro  slaves.  Various  other  semi-piratical  ventures 
were  also  undertaken  by  the  Bermudians.  In  1710 


APPENDIX  365 

the  governor  of  Bermuda  sent  an  armed  vessel  against 
the  freebooters  of  the  Bahamas  and  over  a  hun- 
dred of  the  buccaneers  were  brought  to  Bermuda  as 
settlers. 

In  the  same  year  the  Bermudians  attacked  and 
captured  a  party  of  Spaniards  who  had  invaded  Turk's 
Island  in  the  Bahamas. 

In  addition  to  the  original  English,  there  were  the 
mixed  nationalities  comprising  the  pirates  in  Bermuda, 
as  well  as  many  negroes,  and,  to  complete  the  choice 
assortment,  many  American  Indians  were  brought 
as  slaves  from  New  England. 

In  1 775  the  sympathies  of  the  islanders  were  strongly 
in  favor  of  the  rebellious  colonists  of  New  England 
and,  to  aid  General  Washington  in  his  campaign,  the 
Bermudians  stole  one  hundred  barrels  of  gunpowder 
from  the  magazines  on  the  island. 

Despite  this,  Bermuda  remained  loyal  to  England 
and  when  the  Civil  War  broke  out  their  ports  became 
a  famous  rendezvous  for  blockade  runners. 

Places  of  interest  to  visitors  are:  Gibbs  Hill  Light, 
Floating  Dock  and  Naval  Station  at  Ireland  Island; 
Cathedral,  or  Old  Church  Rocks;  Mount  Langdon; 
Prospect  Hill;  Hungry  Bay  and  fossil  palm  trees;  lily 
fields;  "Five  Sisters"  near  Hamilton;  Spanish  Point; 
Fairylands;  stone  quarries;  Stalactite  Cave  on  Tuck- 
er's Island;  Biological  Station  on  Agar's  Island; 
Harrington  Sound;  Lion  Rock;  Devil's  Hole;  Payn- 
ter's  Vale;  Shark's  Hole;  Tuckerstown  Natural  Arch; 
Penniston's  Cave;  Walsingham  and  Tom  Moore's 
calabash  tree;  Crystal  Cave;  Walsingham  Cave; 


366  APPENDIX 

Blue  Grotto;  coral  reefs  and  marine  gardens;  Cause- 
way; Castle  Island  and  old  forts;  St.  Georges. 

Innumerable  boarding  houses  and  splendid  ho- 
tels everywhere.  Principal  islands  of  group :  Ireland 
Island;  Somerset  Island;  Hamilton  or  Main  Island; 
Long  Bird  Island;  St.  George  Island;  St.  David 
Island. 

Carriages,  bicycles,  horses;  and  boats  to  hire,  but 
motor  cars  not  allowed,  e"xcept  a  btts-iiae-tmder 
government  supervision. 

Reached  by  Quebec  S.  S.  Co.  (about  two  days)  from 
New  York;  by  Royal  Mail,  Canadian  Line,  from 
Halifax  and  West  Indies,  and,  under  normal  condi- 
tions, by  Royal  Mail  Steam  Packet  Co. 

Language,  English.  Currency  nominally  British, 
but  to  large  extent  United  States. 

BUEN  AYRE  OR  BONAIRE 

A  Dutch  possession  under  the  government  of  Cu- 
rasao. 

About  three  hundred  miles  west  of  Curacao.  Area 
about  one  hundred  square  miles. 

Population  about  one  thousand 

Chief  products,  fish,  divi-divi,  aloes,  salt,  goats,  and 
sheep. 

No  hotels  or  boarding  places. 

Reached  by  packet  boats  from  Curasao. 

Language  and  currency  as  in  Curacao. 

CANNOUAN 
One  of  the  Grenadines,  which  see. 


APPENDIX  367 

CARRIACOU 

Largest  of  the  Grenadines  and  about  twenty  miles 
north  of  Grenada. 

Area  about  13  square  miles  or  8467  acres.  Highest 
land,  Bellevue  North,  980  feet.  Many  hills  and  small 
mountains  of  sharp  pyramidal  form,  with  luxuriant 
tropical  vegetation,  but  most  of  original  forest  growth 
cutoff. 

Population  about  seven  thousand.  A  fine  almost 
landlocked  harbor  at  Harvey  Vale  Bay  on  southwest 
coast. 

Fertile,  well-watered,  and  cultivated.  Chief  prod- 
ucts are  cotton,  limes,  cocoa,  fruits,  and  vegetables. 

Language  and  currency  as  in  Grenada. 

No  regular  hotels. 

Reached  by  coastal  steamers  from  Grenada. 

CAYMANS 

A  group  of  small  islands  180  miles  northwest  of 
Jamaica  and  under  the  government  of  that  island. 
Grand  Cayman,  the  largest  of  the  group,  is  17  miles 
in  length  by  four  to  eight  miles  wide.  Low  but  well- 
wooded  islands,  once  the  haunt  of  pirates  and 
buccaneers.  Now  devoted  mainly  to  cocoanuts, 
mahogany,  dye  woods,  cedar  and  timber  industries. 
Hats,  baskets,  fans,  etc.,  are  also  exported.  Popu- 
lation of  Grand  Cayman  about  5000. 

Other  islands  are  Cayman  Brae  and  Little  Cayman, 
about  70  miles  from  Grand  Cayman  and  seven  miles 
apart.  Each  is  about  ten  miles  long  by  a  mile  in 


368  APPENDIX 

width  and  with  a  combined  population  of  about  900. 
Devoted  almost  exclusively  to  cocoanuts. 

Reached  by  small  boats  or  packet  from  Jamaica. 

Language,  English.     Currency,  British  Sterling. 

CRAB  ISLAND 

Also  called  Vieques.  A  small  island  belonging  to 
the  United  States  and  thirteen  miles  east  of  Porto 
Rico.  Mountainous,  with  heavy  forests  of  timber 
and  with  fertile  valleys  in  which  tropical  fruits,  coffee, 
cane,  etc.,  are  raised.  Many  cattle  are  exported. 
Length  about  twenty-one  miles.  Width  about  six 
miles.  Population  about  six  thousand. 

Chief  town,  Isabel  Segunda,  with  a  church,  munici- 
pal hospital,  and  nine  public  schools,  but  no  hotels 
or  boarding  places.  On  the  southern  coast  is  another 
port  called  Punta  Arenas. 

Reached  by  sailing  vessels  from  Porto  Rico  or  St. 
Thomas. 

Language,  English  and  Spanish.     Currency,  U.  S. 

CUBA 

Largest  of  the  West  Indies  and  nearest  to  the 
United  States,  being  distant  only  ninety  miles  from 
Key  West.  An  independent  republic  with  sovereignty 
guaranteed  by  United  States. 

About  780  miles  in  length  and  varying  in  width 
from  twenty  to  one  hundred  miles.  Area  about 
45,000  square  miles,  one  fourth  of  which  is  moun- 
tainous, the  balance  plains,  valleys,  and  swamps. 


APPENDIX 


369 


Highest  land,  the  Sierra  Maestra  range  in  south- 
eastern part  of  island,  8320  feet  and  second  loftiest 
mountains  of  West  Indies. 

More  than  fifty  good  harbors  which  are  ports  of 
entry  and  many  of  which  are  completely  landlocked. 

Over  150  important  rivers,  only  one  of  which,  the 
Cauto  in  Santiago  Province,  is  navigable  for  any  great 
distance. 

Population  about  3,000,000.  Capital  and  chief 
port,  Havana  on  northwest  coast,  with  about  300,000 
inhabitants.  Havana  is  the  largest  city  in  West 
Indies  and  more  merchandise  enters  and  leaves  its 
harbor  than  any  port  of  United  States  except  New 
York.  Other  large  and  important  towns  are  the  fol- 
lowing. (Population  only  approximate.) 


Santiago  de  Cuba    46,000 

Cardenas 

25,000 

Cienfuegos               30,000 

Manzanillo 

16,000 

Santa  Clara             17,000 

Sagua  la  Grande 

13,000 

Guanabacoa             15,000 

Pinar  del  Rio 

10,000 

Trinidad                    12,000 

Jovellanos 

10,000 

Marianao                 10,000 

Caibarien 

9,000 

San  Antonio  de  los 

Holguin 

8,000 

Banos                   10,000 

Camaguey 

30,000 

Guines                       9,000 

Sancti  Spiritus 

18,000 

Placetas                    "7,000 

Guantanamo 

15,000 

Matanzas                 36,000 

The  island  is  divided  into  six  provinces  as  follows: 


Oriente 
Matanzas 


Camaguey 
Havana 


Santa  Clara 
Pinar  del  Rio 


370  APPENDIX 

Cuba's  resources  are  almost  unlimited.  There  are 
vast  mineral  riches,  important  fisheries,  valuable 
woods,  enormous  agricultural  opportunities,  and  im- 
mense areas  of  grazing  lands. 

The  heaviest  forests  are  in  eastern  Cuba,  the 
greatest  mineral  deposits  in  the  mountains  of  the 
southeast;  the  best  grazing  lands  in  the  central  por- 
tions of  the  island,  and  the  only  large  swamps  are 
along  the  southern  central  coast. 

The  flora  of  Cuba  comprises  over  three  thousand 
species,  including  the  entire  range  of  the  tropics,  and 
the  forests  contain  such  valuable  woods  as  mahogany, 
lignum- vitas,  cedar,  and  logwood.  _A11  the  tropical, 
and  many  of  the  temperate  fruits  and  vegetables,  may 
be  grown  to  perfection. 

Among  the  mineral  riches  are  iron,  copper,  gold, 
manganese,  cinnabar,  lignite,  asphalt,  petroleum,  etc. 
The  sponge  fishery  is  an  important  industry,  tortoise 
shell  is  obtained  in  large  quantities,  pearls  occur  in 
the  waters  among  the  outlying  cays,  and  the  food 
fishery  is  of  vast  importance. 

Cuba  is  one  of  the  few  countries  in  the  world  whose 
exports  exceed  the  imports,  the  balance  in  favor  of  the 
island  amounting  to  over  $32po  per  capita,  the  per 
capita  commerce  being  over  one  hundred  dollars 
and  exceeding  that  of  any  other  country,  with  the 
exception  of  the  Argentine  Republic. 

And  this  despite  the  fact  that  the  island's  per  capita 
debt  is  very  high,  amounting  to  about  twenty-eight 
dollars  and  that  only  a  small  portion — about  1,800,000 
acres — of  her  soil  is  under  cultivation. 


APPENDIX  371 

Annual  exports  about  $250,000,000. 

Annual  imports  about  155,000,000.00 

Principal  exports  are: 

Sugar  valued  at  over  $150,000,000.00 

Tobacco  "       "      "  60,000,000.00 

Fruits  and  vegetables  over  10,000,000.00 

Cocoa,  asphalt,  honey,  sisal,  timber  over  10,000,000.00 
Miscellaneous  over  10,000,000.00 

Cuba's  climate  is  exceedingly  pleasant  and  salu- 
brious, in  fact  the  island  is  the  healthiest  spot  in  the 
world,  the  mortality  being  but  ten  per  thousand  as 
against  sixteen  per  thousand  in  the  United  States. 

On  the  coast  it  is  hot  at  times,  but  the  maximum 
temperature  ever  recorded  was  98°  on  August  24,1899, 
and  only  four  times  in  six  years  has  it  risen  above  95°. 
The  minimum  temperature  recorded  was  47°  on  Janu- 
ary 27,  1901 .  The  average  for  the  hottest  and  coolest 
months,  over  a  period  of  six  years,  was:  June,  80°; 
July,  80°;  August,  81°;  September,  80°;  January,  70°. 

Much  of  Cuba  is  outside  the  hurricane  zone  and 
only  on  five  occasions  has  the  weather  bureau  at 
Havana  recorded  a  wind  velocity  exceeding  thirty- 
five  miles  per  hour.  No  record  of  a  severe  gale  or 
hurricane  is  known  from  Havana,  although  the  east- 
ern and  southern  coasts  suffer  at  times. 

Average  rainfall  fifty-four  inches  annually.  Almost 
any  desired  climate  may  be  found.  In  the  high 
interior  lands  and  mountains  it  is  very  cool,  whereas 
the  towns  on  the  coast,  especially  in  the  south,  are 
very  hot  during  the  middle  of  the  day. 


372  APPENDIX 

Cuba  was  discovered  by  Columbus  on  October  28, 
1492.  Although  greatly  pleased  with  the  beauty  of 
the  island  he  never  sailed  around  it,  and  died  in  the 
belief  that  it  was  a  continent. 

In  1508,  Spaniards  under  Ocampo  explored  the  coast 
line  and  entered  the  bay,  which  is  now  Havana's 
harbor,  for  the  purpose  of  careening  and  pitching  their 
ships  with  the  native  asphalt.  The  island  was  first 
named  Juana  in  honor  of  Prince  Juan,  son  of  Ferdi- 
nand and  Isabella,  but  upon  the  death  of  the  king  was 
rechristened  Fernandina  and  was  later  changed  to 
Santiago  and  still  later  to  A  ve  Maria.  The  pres- 
ent name  of  Cuba  is  of  Indian  origin  and  means  a 
"jar  of  oil." 

In  1511  Don  Diego  Velasquez,  with  four  ships 
and  with  Hernando  Cortez  among  the  party  of  three 
hundred  men,  sailed  from  Santo  Domingo  for  Cuba  and 
landed  near  the  present  site  of  Guantanamo  on  the 
southern  coast.  They  were  not  impressed  with  the 
spot  and  not  until  1512  was  the  first  settlement  estab- 
lished at  Baracoa,  on  the  northern  coast.  Santiago 
was  founded  by  Velasquez  in  1514  and  Havana  in 
1519.  The  original  landing-place  at  Havana  is  now 
marked  by  a  building  known  as  the  "Templete." 
For  many  years  Havana  and  the  other  towns  were 
greatly  troubled  by  pirates  and  the  Fuerza  and  Punta 
forts  and  the  Morro  were  built  mainly  as  a  protection 
against  such  enemies,  the  Fuerza  being  erected  under 
the  direction  of  De  Soto  in  1539.  It  is  the  oldest 
building  in  Havana  to-day. 

Havana  was  attacked  by  Sir  Francis  Drake  in  1592, 


APPENDIX  373 

by  Dutch  buccaneers  in  1628,  and  was  totally  de- 
stroyed by  the  French  in  1538  and  again  in  1554. 

Vast  fortunes  were  at  that  time  stored  at  Havana, 
in  transit  from  Mexico  and  Panama  to  Spain,  and  to 
protect  these  riches  from  the  freebooters  the  city  wall 
was  begun  in  1665,  and,  with  its  completion,  the  city 
became  almost  impregnable,  but  was  taken  by  Lord 
Albemarle  and  the  British  fleet  in  1762,  and  remained 
under  British  rule  for  a  year.  Among  the  officers 
taking  part  in  this  battle  was  General  Israel  Putnam 
of  Revolutionary  fame. 

Santiago  was  the  capital  until  1608,  and  was  fre- 
quently attacked  by  pirates  and  other  nations.  Cap- 
tured by  the  French  in  1553  and  ransomed  for  $80,000 
and  taken  by  British  in  1662.  In  1663  the  Santiago 
Morro  was  rebuilt  and  strengthened  and  withstood 
all  subsequent  assaults  until  the  Spanish-American 
war. 

The  first  revolt  against  Spanish  rule  was  in  1850-51 
and  was  led  by  Narciso  Lopez.  In  August,  1868,  the 
famous  "  Ten  Year's  War  "  broke  forth,  but  the  Cubans 
were  unsuccessful  and  not  until  the  revolution  of 
1895,  which  culminated  in  the  evacuation  of  the  Span- 
iards on  January  I,  1899,  was  Cuba  freed  from  the 
misrule  of  Spain. 

The  island  then  became  a  possession  of  the  United 
States  and  was  delivered  to  the  Cubans  May  20, 
1902. 

About  Havana  there  are  innumerable  places  of  in- 
terest, among  which  are  the  following.  (Numerals 
refer  to  map  of  Havana.) 


374  APPENDIX 

1 .  ALAMEDA.     Formerly  the  favorite  parade  ground 

but  now  in  the  midst  of  the  busy  shipping 
district.  Reached  by  Aduana  cars,  or  by  walk 
through  Officios  Street. 

2.  ALBEAR   SQUARE.      Junction   of   San   Rafael, 

O'Reilly,  and  Obispo  Streets,  one  block 
from  Central  Park.  Statue  is  of  Senor 
Albear,  the  engineer  who  built  Havana's 
present  water  supply  system. 

3.  ALBISU  THEATER.  Albear  Square  and  San  Rafael 

Street. 

4.  AMERICAN  CLUB.     Prado  and  Virtudes  Street. 

Surmounted  by  eagle  and  initials  "A.  C. " 

5.  ANGELES   CHURCH.     On    Montserrate    Street, 

two  blocks  from  Central  Park.  Near  by  is 
the  Loma  del  Angel,  narrowest  street  in 
Havana. 

6.  BELEN  CHURCH.     Corner  Compostela  and  Luz 

Streets.  Connected  by  a  covered  bridge 
with  the  convent  school  across  the  street. 
Contains  a  museum,  valuable  library,  and 
notable  paintings.  Open  to  public. 

7.  CABALLERA   WHARF.     Landing-place  for  small 

boats.     Foot  of  Obispo  and  O'Reilly  Streets. 

8.  CAMPO  MARTE.     With  statue  of  La  India.    Also 

known  as  India  Park.  Upper  end  of  Prado, 
facing  Colon  Park. 

9.  CATHEDRAL.     Founded  by  Jesuits  in  1656  and 

completed  in  1724.  Formerly  contained  sup- 
posed bones  of  Columbus.  (See  San'Domingo.) 
Silver  altar  valued  at  $10,000,000  and  many 


APPENDIX  375 

jeweled  vestments.  On  Emperado  Street, 
corner  of  San  Ignacio. 

10.  CENTRAL  STATION.     Terminal   of   United   and 

Central  Railways.  Egido  Street — continu- 
ation of  Montserrate  Street — short  distance 
from  Central  Park  on  trolley  line. 

1 1 .  CHRIST  CHURCH.  Villegas  and  Amargura  Streets. 

In  rear  is  the  Augustinian  College. 

12.  CITY  HALL.     Only  small  portions  remain,  the 

best  and  most  accessible  being  between 
Zulueta  and  Montserrate  Streets,  near  Henry 
Clay  Cigar  Factory. 

13.  CLERK'S  CLUB.     Headquarters  of  protective  and 

benefit  association  of  over  35,000  members. 
Corner  Prado  and  Trocadero  Street. 

14.  COLON  MARKET.     One  block  from  Central  Park 

on  Montserrate  Street,  reaching  through  to 
Zulueta  Street,  and  between  Animas  and 
Trocadero  Streets. 

15.  COLON    PARK.     Occupies    twelve    squares    at 

upper  end  of  Prado,  opposite  La  India 
statue. 

1 6.  CONGRESSIONAL  BUILDINGS.    Facing  Plaza  de 

Armas  on  O'Reilly  Street. 

17.  CUSTOMHOUSE  (ADUANA).     Reached  by  Aduana 

cars  or  by  walking  south  two  blocks  from 
Albisu  Theater  on  Montserrate  Street  and 
turning  to  left  at  Teniente  Street.  On 
Officios  Street  at  foot  of  Teniente  Rey  Street. 

1 8.  CUSTOMS  WAREHOUSE.     Formerly  the  church  of 

San  Francisco.     Never  used  as  church  since  it 


376  APPENDIX 

was  desecrated  by  British  in  1762.  Near 
Custom  House  close  to  Machina  Docks. 

19.  DOMINICAN  CONVENT  AND  CHURCH.    Founded 

1578.  Opened  as  school  by  Dominican  Friars 
1728.  Became  University  of  Havana  and 
removed  to  larger  quarters  on  Principe  Hill. 
O'Reilly,  Mercaderes,  Obispo,  and  San  Ignacio 
Streets. 

20.  FRANCISCO  DE  PAULA  CHURCH.    Facing  harbor 

on  Paula  Street. 

21.  FUERZA  FORT.     Reached  by  Aduana  cars,  or 

by  walking  down  either  Obispo  or  O'Reilly 
Streets.  Faces  Plaza  de  Armas  on  O'Reilly 
Street.  Oldest  building  in  Havana,  built  by 
De  Soto,  1539. 

22.  HENRY   CLAY   CIGAR  FACTORY.    Three  blocks 

from  Central  Park  on  Zulueta  Street.  Open 
to  visitors. 

23.  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES.     Plaza  de  Armas, 

south  side. 

24.  JAIL.     Now  used  as  office  of  Board  of  Education 

but  formerly  the  Spanish  prison.  A  large  build- 
ing at  the  foot  of  Prado  on  the  right-hand 
side. 

25.  LEPER  HOSPITAL.    Faces  the  sea  at  Malecon 

Drive  and  Oquendo  Street.  Founded  1681, 
by  donation  of  Mexican  priest. 

26.  Luz  WHARF.     Ferries  for  Casa  Blanca,  Regla, 

and  Guanabacoa  leave  from  here.  Close  to 
Plaza  de  Armas. 

27.  MALECON  DRIVE.     A  beautiful  drive  along  sea- 


APPENDIX  377 

wall  from  Punta  Castle,  at  foot  of  Prado,  to 
Vedado  (residential  district). 

28.  MARTI  THEATER.     One  block  east  of  Prado  at 

corner  of  Zulueta  and  Dragones  Streets. 

29.  MERCED   CHURCH.     Richest   and  most   aristo- 

cratic church  in  Cuba.  Built  in  1746.  Con- 
tains many  notable  paintings.  Cuba  and 
Merced  Streets. 

30.  MIRAMAR  HOTEL.     Facing  the  sea  on  left-hand 

side  of  the  Prado  on  the  Malecon. 

31.  NATIONAL    BANK.      Havana's    "sky-scraper." 

The  American  Consulate  is  on  the  fifth  floor. 
Up-to-date,  fireproof  building  built  in  Spanish 
style  with  patio.  Corner  Cuba  and  Obispo 
Streets. 

32.  NATIONAL   LIBRARY.     Open   week   days   from 

8  A.M.  until  5  P.M.  Contains  over  20,000 
volumes  and  many  rare  old  books,  among 
them  works  of  Las  Casas,  printed  in  1552,  and 
History  of  New  World,  published  1565.  On 
Chacon  Street  at  corner  of  Maestranza  Street. 

33.  NATIONAL    THEATER.     Cuba's   largest    theater 

and  fifth  largest  in  the  world.  Built  seventy- 
six  years  ago  and  cost  half  a  million  dollars. 
Now  rebuilt  and  forming  a  portion  of  the 
magnificent  new  group  of  buildings  occupying 
the  square  bounded  by  Consulado,  San 
Rafael,  and  Prado  and  facing  Central  Park. 

34.  PAIRET  THEATER.     Faces  Central  Park  on  the 

south,  between  Prado  and  Zulueta  Streets. 

35.  PALACE    (old).     Plaza  de  Armas,    Obispo,    and 


378  APPENDIX 

O'Reilly  Streets.  The  magnificent  new  pal- 
ace is  on  the  Prado  facing  Central  Park. 

36.  PALACE  OF  JUSTICE.      Cuban   Department  of 

State  and  Justice.  To  the  left  as  one  leaves 
the  cathedral. 

37.  PAULA  HOSPITAL  FOR  WOMEN.     Between  Ha- 

vana and  Cuba  Streets  on  San  Isidro  Street. 

38.  PELOTA    COURT.     This    place,    known    as   the 

"Fronton, "  is  where  the  famous  Basque  game 
of  pelota  is  played;  the  favorite  game  of  the 
Spaniards  and  Cubans  and  second  only  to 
baseball  in  popularity.  Oquendo  and  Con- 
cordia  Streets. 

39.  PLAZA  DE  ARMAS.     Occupies  the  square  at  foot  of 

O'Reilly  and  Obispo  Streets.  Around  it  are  the 
Templete,  Post  Office,  Old  Palace,  and  Fuerza. 

40.  PRODUCE  EXCHANGE  (LA  LONJA).    A  splendid 

new  building  on  San  Francisco  Plaza  near 
San  Francisco  Wharf.  Reached  by  Muelle  or 
Aduana  car  lines  or  by  walking  down  O'Reilly 
or  Obispo  Street. 

41.  PUNTA  FORT.     Commenced  at  same  time  as  the 

Morro,  in  1589.     At  foot  of  Prado. 

42.  SAN  JUAN  DE  Dios  PARK.     Contains  a  statue  of 

Cervantes.  Between  Aguilar  and  Habana 
Streets  one  block  from  O'Reilly  Street,  on 
Emperado  Street. 

43.  SAN  LAZARO  TOWER.     A  watch  tower  erected  as 

a  lookout  against  pirates  in  the  old  days. 
Near  the  Leper  Hospital  close  to  the  shore  on 
the  Malecon  Drive. 


APPENDIX  379 

44.  SANTA  CATALINA  CHURCH  AND  CONVENT.    Built 

in  1698.  Situated  on  O'Reilly  Street.  Con- 
tains many  relics. 

45.  SANTA  CLARA  CHURCH  AND  CONVENT.  Founded 

1644.  Sol  and  Luz  Streets,  between  Cuba 
and  Havana  Streets. 

46.  STUDENTS'   MEMORIAL.     In  Neptune  Park  at 

foot  of  Zulueta  Street  and  Prado,  near  La 
Punta  fort.  Erected  in  memory  of  eight 
University  students  who  were  executed  on  the 
spot  in  1871. 

47.  TACON    MARKET.     Havana's    largest    market. 

One  block  west  of  Colon  Park  on  La  Reina 
Street.  Reached  by  trolley  cars  through 
Angeles  or  Reina  Street. 

48.  TEMPLETE.     A  small   chapel  erected  to  com- 

memorate landing  of  first  settlers  of  Havana. 
A  ceiba  tree, — a  descendant  of  the  original 
tree  under  which  first  mass  was  said, — stands 
beside  the  building.  Open  but  once  a  year, 
on  the  night  of  November  15th — when  lighted 
and  decorated  on  anniversary  of  landing. 
Foot  of  O'Reilly  Street,  fronting  Plaza  de 
Armas. 

49.  TREASURY.    Foot  of  Obispo  Street  on  narrow 

lane  turning  to  the  right. 

50.  URSULINE  CONVENT.    About  two  blocks  from 

Central  Park,  south  on  Egido  Street  near 
Dragones  Street. 

Notable  spots  which  should  be  visited  in  the  vicinity 
of  Havana  are:  The  Morro  and  Cabanas  across  the 


38o  APPENDIX 

bay;  Atares  Castle;  Principe  Fortress;  Botanical 
Gardens;  Baseball  grounds  (Almendares  Field) ;  Regla; 
Colon  Cemetery, — where  the  victims  of  Maine  dis- 
aster were  interred;  Marianao  Playa  with  its  lovely 
sea  bathing;  Campo  Columbia,  etc. 

About  Santiago  there  are  also  many  notable  places 
of  interest,  among  them  the  Morro  Castle;  house 
of  Hernando  Cortez;  Higginson  School;  Filarmonia 
Theater,  where  Patti  first  appeared  in  public  when 
fourteen  years  old;  monument  to  Americans  of 
Virginius;  Alameda;  San  Carlos  Club;  San  Juan 
Battlefield;  Peace  Tree;  El  Caney;  Cobre  copper 
mines.  The  miraculous  image  of  Nuestra  Senora  de 
la  Caridad  and  shrine,  with  offerings  and  jeweled 
robes  valued  at  over  $10,000,^00. 

Throughout  the  interior,  and  along  the  coasts  there 
are  also  many  beautiful,  fascinating,  interesting  spots 
too  numerous  to  mention,  but  the  Caves  of  Bellamar 
and  Yumuri  Valley  near  Matanzas;  the  tobacco  dis- 
trict about  Pinar  del  Rio;  the  ancient  town  of  Cama- 
guey,  or  Puerto  Principe,  sacked  by  Henry  Morgan, 
although  far  from  the  coast;  Batabano,  a  little  Venice 
with  houses  on  stilts  and  from  which  the  steamers  sail 
for  Isle  of  Pines ;  the  famous  Trocha,  and  many  other 
places  will  well  repay  a  visit  or,  better  still,  a  trip 
from  Havana  to  Santiago  by  railway  should  be  taken. 

Havana's  hotels  are  palatial,  numerous,  and  strictly 
modern,  and  there  are  also  innumerable  boarding 
places  and  excellent  restaurants.  In  every  town  of 
any  importance  there  are  first-class  hotels  and  any- 
where in  Cuba  a  traveler  may  be  perfectly  comfortable. 


APPENDIX  381 

Carriages,  locally  called  "cabs"  or  "coches, "  are 
everywhere  and  are  ridiculously  cheap.  (See  tariffs 
carried  by  every  public  vehicle  and  don't  pay  more.) 
Trolley  cars  run  here,  there,  and  everywhere  about 
Havana,  boats  and  launches  ply  back  and  forth  upon 
the  harbor,  and  there  are  many  public  automobiles. 
Most  of  the  towns  of  Cuba  are  in  direct  communi- 
cation with  Havana  by  railway  or  electric  lines ;  coastal 
vessels  connect  the  coast  ports,  and  there  is  not 
the  least  difficulty  in  traveling  anywhere  on  the  island 
(see  "Railways,  steamboat  lines,  etc."). 

Cuba  is  reached  from  New  York  by  United  Fruit 
Co.,  and  by  the  New  York  and  Cuba  Mail  S.  S.  Co. 
(Ward  Line) ;  by  railway  to  Florida  and  hence  by  ferry 
or  steamer  from  Key  West,  and  from  Boston,  New 
Orleans,  Philadelphia,  and  all  other  large  ports  by 
direct  steamships. 

The  language  of  Cuba  is  Spanish,  but  in  every  hotel, 
on  all  the  railway  and  steamboat  lines,  and  in  all  the 
larger  stores  and  shops  the  employes,  or  at  least  some 
of  them,  speak  English.  There  is  no  difficulty  in 
finding  interpreters  and  most  of  the  educated  Cubans 
speak  both  French  and  English  fluently.  The  coinage 
of  Cuba  is  its  own,  but  Spanish,  French,  and  United 
States  coins  are  accepted  and  the  basis  is  the  dollar 
or  "peso"  of  one  hundred  cents  or  "centavos," 
with  a  gold  standard. 

CULEBRA 

A  possession  of  the  United  States  off  the  eastern 
coast  of  Porto  Rico.  An  important  naval  station 


382  APPENDIX 

where  is  stationed  a  detachment  of  the  U.  S.  Marine 
Corps.  Aside  from  the  naval  station  at  Great  Har- 
bor there  are  two  small  towns  on  Culebra,  Pueblo 
Dewey  and  Camp  Roosevelt. 

Culebra  is  hilly  but  not  mountainous;  dry,  but  the 
soil  is  fertile.  Cattle  raising  is  the  only  industry. 

No  hotels  or  boarding  houses. 

Places  of  interest:  Naval  station.  Reached  by 
mail  boat  from  Fajardo,  Porto  Rico;  by  boats  from 
San  Juan  or  by  sailboat  from  St.  Thomas. 

Language,  English  and  Spanish.     Currency,  U.  S. 

CURASAO 

A  Dutch  island  and  seat  of  government  of  Dutch 
West  Indies  of  which  Curasao  is  the  largest  island. 

About  forty  miles  off  the  Venezuelan  coast.  Length 
about  forty  miles;  width  four  to  seven  miles.  Area 
200  square  miles.  Highest  mountain  1000  feet  above 
sea.  Discovered  by  Amerigo  Vespucci  in  1499,  who 
reported  the  island  inhabited  by  a  race  of  giants. 

Chief  town,  Willemstadt,  with  a  population  of 
about  20,000.  Total  population  about  30,000. 

Mainly  of  importance  for  its  commerce,  as  it  is  a  free 
port,  but  exports  phosphate  rock,  ostrich  plumes, 
fish,  and  other  products. 

Several  good  hotels  and  boarding  houses. 

Points  of  interest:  The  bridge  of  boats  across  en- 
trance to  the  harbor.  Old  pirate  forts.  Ostrich  farm. 
Publishing  house  of  Betancourt  Co.  Quaint  Dutch 
architecture. 


APPENDIX  383 

Language  officially  Dutch,  but  English  generally 
spoken.  The  native  tongue  is  a  strange  lingo  called 
Papiamento,  and  a  mixture  of  Dutch,  English,  Span- 
ish, Negro,  French,  Portuguese,  and  probably  some 
Indian.  Currency,  Dutch. 

Reached  by  Royal  Dutch  W.  I.  Line  from  New  York 
or  by  Red  "  D"  Line  from  New  York  via  Porto  Rico. 

DESIRADE  OR  DESEADA 

A  dependency  of  Guadeloupe  and  east  of  the  latter. 
First  landfall  of  Columbus  on  his  second  voyage  in 
1493  and  named  by  him  "The  Desired  Land."  Area 
about  ten  square  miles.  Of  limestone  formation  and 
curiously  terraced. 

Population  about  1500,  mostly  blacks. 

No  hotels  or  boarding  places. 

Reached  by  sailboat  from  Guadeloupe. 

Language  as  in  Gaudeloupe.     Currency,  French. 

DOMINICA 

A  British  colony  of  the  Leeward  Island  Confedera- 
tion and  largest  of  the  group.  Situated  fifteen  miles 
north  of  Martinique  and  about  twenty-five  miles  south 
of  Guadeloupe.  Extremely  mountainous  and  rugged, 
volcanic  in  formation  and  with  several  active,  but 
dormant,  craters.  Loftiest  of  the  Lesser  Antilles, 
the  highest  peak  being  Morne  Diablotin,  5300  feet; 
but  Microtin,  Trois  Pitons,  and  several  other  moun- 
tains are  nearly  as  high.  Home  of  last  of  the  pure- 


384  APPENDIX 

blooded  yellow  Caribs,  the  aborigines  of  the  Antilles. 

About  three  hundred  Caribs  live  in  Dominica,  of 
whom  not  over  thirty-five  are  of  unmixed  blood. 

Length  of  island  about  30  miles;  width  16;  area  300 
square  miles  or  about  200,000  acres,  of  which  less 
than  90,000  are  under  cultivation. 

Population  about  35,000,  less  than  one  per  cent, 
of  whom  are  white. 

Capital,  Roseau,  with  7000  inhabitants. 

Other  ports  Soufriere,  Portsmouth,  Rosalie,  Grand 
Bay,  etc. 

Discovered  by  Columbus  in  1493  and  named  in 
honor  of  the  day,  Sunday. 

First  settled  by  British  in  1627.  Driven  out  by 
Caribs  and  settled  by  French,  who  also  abandoned 
it  to  Indians.  Afterwards  declared  a  "neutral 
island"  and  left  to  Caribs  until  1748.  Seized  by 
English  in  1763  and  later  changed  hands  repeatedly 
until  ceded  permanently  to  Great  Britain  in  1805. 
Most  important  naval  battle  between  French  and 
English  fleets  occurred  off  western  coast  of  the  island 
in  1782,  when  Rodney  defeated  De  Grasse. 

Climate  very  healthy,  hot  on  coasts  but  cool  in 
interior,  with  excessive  rainfall,  amounting  to  over 
three  hundred  inches  annually  in  mountains. 

Chief  products:  limes,  lime  juice,  lime  oil,  cocoa, 
fruits,  and  spices. 

Points  of  interest:  Botanic  station  at  Roseau; 
library  and  old  fort,  Roseau;  lime  estates,  craters  at 
Soufriere,  mountain  or  fresh  water  lake,  boiling  lake, 
hot  springs  of  Wotten  Waven,  waterfall  near  Roseau, 


APPENDIX  385 

old  fort  at  Scott's  Head,  imperial  road  into  interior, 
Carib  settlement  at  Salybia. 

La  Paz  Hotel  and  several  good  boarding  places  in 
Roseau. 

Reached  by  Quebec  S.  S.  Line  (about  ten  days) 
from  N.  Y.;  Royal  Mail  (Canadian)  boats  from 
Halifax  and  Bermuda  and  from  other  British  W.  I. 
ports,  and,  under  normal  conditions,  by  Royal  Mail 
(Intercolonial)  boats. 

Language  officially  and  nominally  English,  but  the 
natives  use  patois  to  large  extent. 

Currency  British,  but  terms  "dollars  and  cents" 
used  almost  universally.  Colonial  banks.  Five-dollar 
bills  are  also  used,  as  well  as  notes  of  Royal  Bank  of 
Canada. 

DOMINICAN  REPUBLIC 

The  eastern  portion,  consisting  of  about  two  thirds 
of  the  area,  of  the  island  of  Santo  Domingo.  An 
independent  republic  under  the  semi-supervision  of 
the  United  States  Government,  which  controls  the 
customs  and  guarantees  constitutional  rights  and 
elections. 

Situated  between  Cuba  on  the  west  and  Porto  Rico 
to  the  east,  the  island  of  Santo  Domingo  is  one  of  the 
most  beautiful  and  fertile  of  the  West  Indies  and  the 
second  largest  of  the  Greater  Antilles.  The  Domini- 
can Republic  has  an  area  of  about  20,000  square 
miles  and  is  the  most  mountainous  of  the  West  Indies 
as  well  as  the  loftiest;  Mount  I^oma  Tina  rising  to 


386  APPENDIX 

V 

11,000  feet  above  the  sea.  There  are  large  areas  of 
level  land,  however,  vast  tablelands  and  plains,  enor- 
mous valleys,  and  extensive  swamps. 

The  population  numbers  about  600,000,  and,  unlike 
Haiti,  a  large  percentage  of  the  inhabitants  are  white, 
or  very  slightly  tainted  with  negro  blood.  Capital, 
Santo  Domingo  City,  the  oldest  city  in  the  New  World, 
founded  in  1496  on  the  Ozama  River  in  the  southern 
part  of  the  republic.  Population  about  30,000.  Other 
important  towns  are :  Monte  Christi,  on  the  northern 
coast,  founded  in  1523,  with  a  population  of  10,000,  is 
the  outlet  of  the  Yaqui  Valley  and  is  close  to  the  Hai- 
tien  border  famous  as  a  nucleus  of  revolutions.  Puerto 
Plata,  also  on  the  northern  coast,  is  at  the  seaward 
terminus  of  the  railway  to  Santiago  de  los  Caballeros 
on  the  interior  tableland.  It  has  a  population  of 
about  15,000  and  is  beautifully  situated  on  an  almost 
landlocked  bay  at  the  foot  of  Isabella  de  Torre,  2000 
feet  in  height.  Founded  in  1502.  Near  Puerto  Plata, 
about  fifty  miles  west,  are  the  ruins  of  Isabella,  the 
first  European  city  founded  in  America  and  first 
settled  by  men  under  Columbus  in  1493. 

Samana  or  Santa  Barbara  de  Samana,  on  the  north- 
ern coast  of  Samana  Bay,  in  the  eastern  portion  of  the 
republic,  is  also  an  important  town  of  about  10,000 
inhabitants  and  was  founded  by  Canary  Islanders  in 
1756,  but  has  a  large  population  of  negroes  from  the 
United  States  who  immigrated  to  the  district  many 
years  ago.  Sanchez,  at  the  head  of  Samana  Bay,  is  the 
terminus  of  the  Samana-La  Vega  railway  and  has  a 
population  of  about  3000.  La  Vega,  the  inland  termi- 


APPENDIX  387 

nus  of  this  railway,  has  a  population  of  about  30,000; 
settled  in  1564  after  the  original  town  of  Concepcion  de 
la  Vega  (founded  by  Bartholomew  Columbus  in  1495) 
was  destroyed  by  an  earthquake.  Moca,  with  about 
30,000  inhabitants,  between  La  Vega  and  Santiago, 
is  an  important  inland  town,  as  is  Santiago  de  los 
Caballeros,  the  interior  terminus  of  the  Puerto  Plata 
railway,  and  which  has  a  population  of  about  45,000 
and  was  founded  by  "gentlemen"  (caballeros)  of 
noble  birth  in  1504.  San  Francisco  de  Macoris,  con- 
nected with  La  Vega  by  railway,  has  a  population  of 
about  30,000  and  is  the  center  of  the  cocoa  industry. 
On  the  southern  coasts  are :  La  Romana,  an  important 
sugar  port;  San  Pedro  de  Macoris  on  the  Higuano 
River  and  with  a  population  of  about  15,000,  an 
important  shipping  point  for  the  sugar  mills  of  the 
Seybo  district.  Azua,  west  of  Santo  Domingo  City, 
is  also  an  important  sugar  port.  It  was  founded  by 
Diego  Velasquez  in  1504  and  has  a  population  of  about 
20,000.  There  are  also  many  other  towns  of  great 
historical  interest  and  local  importance,  such  as  San 
Cristobal;  Bani,  the  birthplace  of  the  Cuban  patriot, 
General  Maximo  Gomez;  Barahona;  Neyba,  near 
which  is  the  Cero  de  Sal,  a  mountain  of  rock  salt; 
Higuey  in  the  Seybo  district,  founded  by  Ponce  de 
Leon;  Sabana  la  Mar  on  the  southern  shore  of  the 
Bay  of  Samana,  and  near  which  is  the  immense  cocoa 
plantation  of  the  Souchards;  Junico,  in  the  pine  belt 
of  the  interior;  as  well  as  many  smaller  towns  dating 
back  to  the  days  of  Columbus. 

The  resources  of  the  Dominican  Republic  are  almost 


388  APPENDIX 

innumerable.  Vast  mineral  wealth  abounds  but  is 
undeveloped.  Gold,  silver,  copper,  iron,  nickel,  salt, 
petroleum,  lignite,  cinnabar,  tin,  and  amber  are  known 
to  exist,  and  in  the  Spanish  days  the  island  was  the 
greatest  source  of  precious  metals  of  all  the  New 
World  colonies.  Vast  pine  forests  cover  the  interior 
mountains;  mahogany,  lancewood,  cedar,  and  other 
cabinet  woods  abound;  logwood  grows  luxuriantly, 
and  any  tropical,  and  many  temperate,  products  can 
be  easily  grown. 

The  chief  exports  are  cacao,  cocoanuts,  fruits, 
hides,  timber,  logwood,  mangrove  bark,  sugar,  coffee, 
tobacco,  salt,  etc. 

The  climate  varies  greatly  according  to  the  district 
and  altitude  but  is  healthy  in  nearly  every  portion  of 
the  republic.  In  the  interior  it  is  cool  and  spring- 
like, but  on  some  parts  of  the  coasts  very  hot  and  dry. 

The  republic  has  a  long,  turbulent,  but  romantic, 
history.  Discovered  by  Columbus  in  December, 
1492.  First  settled  by  him  the  following  year,  the 
island  was  known  for  many  years  as  "  Hispaniola. " 
In  1496,  Bartholomew  Columbus — the  admiral's 
brother — founded  Santo  Domingo  City.  It  was  here 
that  Columbus  was  confined  in  chains  and  here  it  is 
believed  he  lies  buried  to-day.  During  the  subsequent 
centuries,  the  island  passed  through  many  wars  and 
innumerable  slave  insurrections;  was  French,  Spanish, 
English,  and  independent  by  turn,  and,  since  it  became 
a  republic,  it  has  suffered  greatly  from  continual 
revolutions. 

Places  of  interest  are  too  numerous  to  mention  in 


APPENDIX  389 

full,  but  important  places  about  Santo  Domingo  City 
are:  The  tomb  of  Columbus,  in  the  ancient  cathedral; 
the  Homenaje  Tower,  oldest  fortress  in  America; 
Columbus's  well,  Columbus's  tree  (to  which  he  is  said 
to  have  moored  his  caravels) ;  house  of  Diego  Colum- 
bus, son  of  Christopher;  ruins  of  San  Francisco 
convent  and  of  Dominican  convent,  where  Las  Casas 
conducted  first  university  in  New  World;  Santa 
Barbara  Church,  city  wall  and  gateways,  plaza  and 
statue  of  Columbus.  Scenic  attractions  are:  The 
waterfalls  near  Puerto  Plata,  Vega  Real  on  Samana- 
La  Vega  railway,  buccaneers'  strongholds  on  islands 
in  Samana  Bay,  Caverns  at  San  Lorenzo  on  south 
shore  of  the  bay,  mountain  of  salt  at  Neyba,  Lake 
Rincon  and  Lake  Enriquillo,  Seybo  plains,  cocoa 
estates,  La  Sosua  near  Puerto  Plata,  site  of  Con- 
cepcion  de  la  Vega  and  Holy  Hill  (Santo  Cerro); 
ruins  of  Isabella,  the  first  settlement  in  America,  etc. 

Several  hotels  in  the  capital,  Puerto  Plata,  and  other 
coast  towns,  and  inns  or  boarding  places  in  every  town 
of  importance,  but  none  is  really  good  and  the  traveler 
must  put  up  with  a  great  deal  of  discomfort  and 
many  inconveniences,  as  conditions  are  most  primi- 
tive. Probably  the  best  hotels  are  at  Puerto  Plata. 

Reached  by  Clyde  West  Indian  Line,  via  Turk's 
Island  from  New  York.  These  steamers  touch  at 
every  port  of  importance  from  Monte  Christi  to  Azua 
and  return.  Also  by  irregular  and  uncertain  small 
steamers  from  Porto  Rico  and  Cuba.  Under  normal 
conditions  by  West  Indian  ships  of  Hamburg-Ameri- 
can Line. 


390  APPENDIX 

Language  of  Dominican  Republic  is  colloquial 
Spanish,  but  English  is  understood  to  some  extent 
in  most  of  the  larger  towns.  Currency  in  use  is  that 
of  the  United  States,  but  Dominican  coins  are  in  circu- 
lation at  greatly  depreciated  value. 

GONAIVES  OR  GONAVE 

A  large  island  in  the  gulf  of  the  same  name  off  the 
western  coast  of  Haiti  and  belonging  to  that  republic. 
About  thirty-five  miles  long  by  eight  miles  wide. 
Heavily  wooded  but  scantily  inhabited  by  negro 
fishermen  and  woodcutters.  A  large  lake  exists  on  the 
island.  Length  about  forty  miles. 

GRENADA 

Seat  of  government  of  the  British  Windward  Island 
Confederation.  About  70  miles  southwest  of  St. 
Vincent  and  96  miles  north  of  Trinidad. 

Length  about  20  miles;  width  about  12  miles;  area 
about  1 20  square  miles  or  77,000  acres,  of  which 
about  40,000  are  cultivated.  Very  mountainous  and 
fertile.  Of  volcanic  formation  but  with  no  active 
craters.  Highest  peak,  Mount  St.  Catherine,  2750 
feet.  Numerous  streams  and  rivers  and  three  good- 
sized  lakes  occupying  extinct  craters  at  high  altitudes. 

Population  about  60,000  (1911).  Capital  and  chief 
port,  St.  Georges,  with  about  5000  inhabitants. 
Other  towns  are  Grenville,  on  the  Atlantic  or  eastern 
coast,  with  1400  inhabitants;  Gouyave,  about  12  miles 


APPENDIX  391 

north  of  St.  Georges,  with  a  population  of  about 
3000;  Sauteurs,  on  the  northern  coast,  with  about 
1 200  inhabitants;  and  Victoria,  1600  inhabitants. 

Chief  products  and  exports  are  cocoa,  nutmegs, 
spices,  cotton,  rubber,  kola  nuts,  fruits,  and  some 
sugar. 

The  climate  is  delightful  and  remarkably  healthy. 
Yellow  fever  has  not  been  epidemic  for  one  hundred 
years,  malaria  and  other  tropical  diseases  are  not 
troublesome,  and  severe  hurricanes  have  never  oc- 
curred, although  the  fag-ends  of  hurricanes  which  have 
been  disastrous  in  neighboring  islands  have  often 
reached  Grenada  without  causing  material  damage. 
Earthquakes  are  of  frequent  and  regular  occurrence, 
but  no  serious  damage  has  ever  been  caused  by  them 
and  they  are  usually  very  light. 

During  the  rainy  season,  from  May  until  December, 
it  is  rather  hot  on  the  coast,  but  always  cool  and  pleas- 
ant in  the  hills.  Average  annual  temperature,  83° 
on  the  coast.  Highest  recorded,  93°.  In  the  interior 
it  frequently  falls  as  low  as  67°  during  the  night. 
Average  annual  rainfall  at  St.  Georges,  seventy-seven 
inches. 

Discovered  by  Columbus,  August  15,  1498,  and 
for  over  one  hundred  years  left  in  undisputed  posses- 
sion of  the  Caribs.  First  settled  by  the  British,  April 
i,  1609,  when  208  colonists  reached  the  islands  only  to 
be  driven  off  by  the  Caribs. 

Claimed  by  both  French  and  British  from  1626-38. 
In  the  latter  year  the  French  attempted  a  settlement, 
but  were  repulsed  by  the  Caribs,  who  were  then  left 


392  APPENDIX 

undisturbed  for  twelve  years.  In  1650  the  French 
"Company  of  the  Islands  of  America"  sold  Marti- 
nique, Grenada,  and  St.  Lucia  to  MM.  Houll  and  Du 
Parquet,  for  £1660.  With  two  hundred  men  the  new 
owners  landed  in  June,  1650,  and  purchased  the 
island  from  the  Caribs  for  hatchets,  knives,  beads,  and 
two  bottles  of  brandy.  In  February,  1651,  the  Indians 
repented  of  their  bargain  and  rose  against  the  French, 
but  the  latter,  reinforced  with  trained  troops,  con- 
ducted a  war  of  extermination,  accompanied  by  most 
inhuman  atrocities,  and  killed  most  of  the  Caribs, 
driving  the  last  organized  band  off  a  precipice  on  the 
northern  coast  which  is  known  as  Morne  des  Sauteurs 
or  "Leapers'  Hill"  to  this  day.  The  last  Caribs  of 
Grenada  died  in  1705.  Le  Compte,  the  leader  of  the 
French  against  the  Caribs,  met  speedy  retribution  for 
his  murderous  acts  and  was  drowned  when  returning 
to  St.  Georges  (then  Fort  Royal). 

In  1657,  the  inhabitants  revolted  against  the  brutal 
French  governor,  and  capturing  him,  condemned  him 
to  be  hanged.  By  claiming  royal  blood  he  induced  his 
captors  to  alter  his  punishment  to  decapitation,  but 
finding  there  was  no  proficient  executioner  on  the 
island  they  compromised  by  shooting  him. 

On  February  4,  1762,  the  island  was  taken  by  the 
British  and  was  placed  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
Lieutenant-Governor  of  Dominica.  In  1771,  St. 
Georges,  which  was  of  wooden  construction,  was 
totally  destroyed  by  fire,  and  another  disastrous 
conflagration  took  place  in  1775,  after  which  the  town 
was  rebuilt  of  brick,  stone,  and  tile. 


APPENDIX  393 

Recaptured  by  the  French,  June,  1779,  but  restored 
to  Great  Britain,  by  treaty  of  Versailles,  September 

3,  1784- 

In  1795,  the  French  and  negroes,  incited  by  the  new 
French  Republic,  joined  in  an  insurrection  and 
butchered  the  English  at  Grenville  at  midnight 
March  2d,  and  carried  many  captives  from  other 
districts  into  their  mountain  fastnesses.  Lieutenant- 
Governor  Home  was  in  the  country  at  the  time  and 
while  on  his  return  to  the  capital  was  taken  prisoner 
by  the  revolutionists.  As  only  192  soldiers  were 
on  the  island  at  the  time,  requests  for  aid  were  sent 
to  the  other  British  islands  and  to  the  Spaniards  in 
Trinidad.  The  latter  at  once  despatched  armed 
vessels  and  troops,  but  were  unable  to  cope  with  the 
situation  and  garrisoned  the  forts  until  the  arrival  of 
British  reinforcements,  who,  under  General  Lindsay, 
attempted  to  storm  the  intrenched  camp  of  the  French 
and  their  negro  allies.  They  were  unsuccessful,  how- 
ever, many  of  the  English  were  attacked  by  fever, 
and  General  Lindsay,  temporarily  insane  from  fever, 
committed  suicide.  Meanwhile  the  white  captives  of 
the  insurrectionists  were  tortured  and  butchered  in 
sight  of  the  British  soldiers  as  reprisal  for  being 
attacked.  Not  until  the  igth  of  June,  1796,  was  the 
insurrection  finally  quelled. 

On  April  I,  1833,  Grenada  was  made  a  part  of  the 
Windward  Island  Confederation  and  on  May  22,  1838, 
the  emancipation  of  the  slaves  was  declared. 

No  event  of  great  importance  occurred  until  1867 
when,  on  November  i8th,  a  submarine  volcanic  dis- 


394  APPENDIX 

turbance  took  place  in  the  harbor  of  St.  Georges.  The 
water  receded  for  five  or  six  feet.  In  certain  spots  it 
boiled  furiously  and  emitted  sulphurous  vapors,  and 
then  the  water  rose  for  four  feet  above  its  normal 
level.  Four  times  this  phenomenon  was  repeated, 
and  while  great  damage  to  shipping  and  property  was 
caused  there  was  no  loss  of  life.  Great  changes  in  the 
bottom  of  the  harbor  occurred  during  the  disturbance, 
which  was  coincidental  with  the  earthquake  and  tidal 
wave  at  St.  Thomas  and  St  Croix. 

Places  of  interest  are:  The  town  of  St.  Georges; 
Gran  Etang,  a  fresh-water  lake  in  an  extinct  crater; 
Morne  de  Sauteurs,  where  the  last  of  the  Grenada 
Caribs  were  forced  to  leap  from  the  cliff  into  the  sea 
to  avoid  massacre  by  the  French;  public  gardens 
near  St.  Georges,  Government  House,  old  forts,  and 
cocoa  and  nutmeg  plantations. 

One  hotel,  not  very  good,  and  a  few  boarding  places 
at  St.  Georges. 

Rest  House  at  Gran  Etang. 

Reached  by  Trinidad  Line  (Trinidad  Shipping 
&  Trading  Co.)  seven  days  from  New  York;  by  Royal 
Mail  (Canadian)  Line  from  Halifax,  Bermuda  and 
other  islands,  and,  under  normal  trade  conditions,  by 
the  Royal  Mail  Steam  Packet  Co. 

Language,  English,  but  a  large  proportion  of  the 
colored  population  speaks  patois  or  Creole.  Currency, 
British,  but  Colonial  Bank  and  Royal  Bank  of  Canada 
notes  are  in  circulation. 


APPENDIX  395 

GRENADINES 

A  group  of  British  islands  lying  between  Grenada 
and  St.  Vincent  and  under  jurisdiction  of  Grenada. 

Very  varied  in  size  and  character.  Many  fertile, 
well  wooded,  and  mountainous;  others  low,  barren, 
and  sterile.  Highest  point  one  thousand  feet  above 
sea.  Principal  islands  are  Bequia,  Union,  Baliceaux, 
Battowia,  Cannouan,  and  Carriacou. 

Area  of  entire  group  about  ten  thousand  acres. 

Principal  products:  cocoa,  cotton,  spices,  dyewoods, 
fish,  cattle,  and  goats. 

Reached  by  packet  boats  from  Grenada,  or  by  sail- 
boat from  St.  Vincent. 

Language  and  currency  as  in  Grenada. 

GUADELOUPE 

A  French  island  about  sixty  miles  south  of  Antigua 
and  twenty-five  miles  north  of  Dominica. 

Comprises  five  separate  islands:  Guadeloupe  proper, 
Grande  Terre,  Marie  Galante,  Desirade,  and  the 
Saintes,  with  a  total  area  of  about  700  square  miles. 
Guadeloupe,  the  northern  and  western  portion,  is  ex- 
ceedingly mountainous  and  of  volcanic  formation  with 
an  active  crater,  the  Soufridre,  which  is  the  highest 
point  of  land,  reaching  a  height  of  5000  feet. 

Very  fertile,  rugged,  and  heavily  forested.  Grande 
Terre,  the  southern  and  eastern  portion  of  the  island, 
is  low,  flat,  and  of  limestone  or  ancient  coral  formation. 
Very  fertile  and  devoted  to  agriculture  and  with 


396  APPENDIX 

nearly  every  available  inch  under  cultivation.  Marie 
Galante  and  Desirade  (which  see)  are  calcareous, 
pyramidal,  lofty,  and  curiously  terraced  in  form. 

The  Saintes  are  three  small  volcanic  islets  rising  to  a 
height  of  1000  feet.  All  are  wooded. 

Population  of  all  five  islands  about  200,000. 

Capital,  Basseterre,  on  Guadeloupe,  with  a  popula- 
tion of  about  10,000.  Chief  port,  Pointe-a-Pitre,  on 
Grande  Terre,  with  18,000  inhabitants. 

Chief  products  and  exports:  sugar,  cocoa,  coffee, 
cabinet  woods,  dyewoods,  and  spices. 

Climate  healthy  and  delightful  in  the  mountains, 
hot  and  none  too  salubrious  in  the  lowlands. 

Discovered  by  Columbus  on  his  second  voyage  in 
1493  and  first  spot  where  the  Spaniards  found  the 
native  aborigines,  called  Caribs,  with  human  flesh 
being  cooked  in  their  pots.  Settled  by  the  French 
and  has  been  French,  British,  Dutch,  and  French  by 
turns. 

Places  of  interest  are  the  various  public  buildings 
and  gardens  at  Pointe-a-Pitre,  government  building 
at  Basseterre,  sugar  mills  and  estates,  forest  scenery, 
and  the  Soufriere  crater,  which  is  somewhat  difficult 
of  ascent,  but  can  be  visited  from  Basseterre. 

Several  hotels  and  boarding  houses  at  Pointe-a-Pitre 
and  Basseterre. 

Reached  by  Quebec  S.  S.  Line  (about  nine  days) 
from  New  York  and  by  Compagnie  Generale  Trans- 
atlantique,  from  the  French  islands,  Colon,  and  Porto 
Rico. 

Language,  French  among  the  upper  classes ;  patois, 


APPENDIX  397 

or  colloquial,  French  among  the  common  people.  A 
few  merchants  and  natives  of  other  islands  may  be 
found  who  speak  English.  Currency,  French,  but  a 
local  French  West  Indian  coinage  is  in  circulation. 
British  and  American  currency  passes  among  the 
merchants  and  British  silver  is  accepted  by  the  market 
people. 

HAITI 

The  western  one  third  of  the  island  of  Santo  Do- 
mingo. An  independent  negro  republic  commonly 
called  the  "Black  Republic"  and  now  under  a  partial 
protectorate  of  the  United  States. 

An  extremely  fertile,  luxuriant,  well  wooded,  and 
beautiful  country  with  many  lofty  mountains,  exten- 
sive plains,  and  broad  rich  valleys.  Area  about 
9000  square  miles. 

Population  about  1,500,000,  of  whom  less  than  10 
per  cent,  are  white  or  of  mixed  blood,  the  great  bulk 
of  the  inhabitants  being  semi-civilized,  ignorant  blacks 
who  have  reverted  to  many  of  the  habits  of  their 
African  ancestors. 

Capital  and  largest  city,  Port-au-Prince,  with 
about  70,000  inhabitants.  Other  important  towns 
are  Jacmel,  southeast  of  the  capital,  with  a  beautiful 
harbor,  Miragoane  west  of  Port-au-Prince,  'Petit 
Goave,  Aux  Cayes,  Jeremie,  on  the  tip  of  the 
Tiburon  Peninsula;  Gonaives  and  St.  Marc  on  the 
western  coast,  the  former  with  18,000  inhabitants; 
Mole  St.  Nicholas  at  the  extreme  northwestern  tip 


398  APPENDIX 

of  the  republic;  Port  de  Paix  on  the  northern  coast, 
and  Cape  Haitien  also  on  the  northern  coast  and 
famous  as  the  spot  where  Columbus  was  shipwrecked 
on  his  famous  voyage  in  1492. 

With  unbounded  resources,  Haiti  could  be  the  most 
prosperous  and  wealthy  of  lands,  but  while  a  large 
amount  of  produce  is  exported,  constant  revolutions, 
an  ignorant  population,  and  slothfulness  and  lack 
of  ambition  have  kept  it  from  development  and 
prosperity.  The  principal  products  and  exports  are 
coffee,  cocoa,  sugar,  dye  woods,  timber,  hides,  and 
tobacco. 

Climate  is  healthy,  away  from  the  towns ;  hot  on  the 
coasts,  but  delightful  in  the  hills.  None  of  the  towns 
are  fit  for  human  beings  under  present  conditions,  but 
sanitation  and  enterprise  could  make  them  as  healthy 
and  delightful  as  those  of  Cuba  or  Porto  Rico. 

Haiti's  history  is  one  of  massacre  after  massacre 
and  untold  cruelties.  Discovered  by  Columbus  in 
1492,  a  temporary  settlement  was  made  at  Cape 
Haitien,  a  fort  was  erected,  and  the  wreckage  of  the 
Santa  Maria  was  collected  and  drawn  ashore.  This 
was  called  La  Navidad  by  Columbus  in  honor  of 
Christmas  Day,  on  which  his  vessel  was  wrecked. 
Upon  his  return  the  following  year,  Columbus  found 
his  fort  destroyed  and  burned  and  the  garrison 
massacred. 

Later,  settlements  were  made  at  various  points 
and  the  district  of  the  north  was  acquired  by  the 
French  by  treaty  in  1697. 

In  1791  a  slave  insurrection  broke  out,  the  leader 


APPENDIX  399 

being  one  Toussaint  TOuverture,  and  under  his  direc- 
tion the  negroes  were  successful  and  the  French  were 
butchered  and  driven  from  the  island.  At  that  time 
there  were  half  a  million  blacks  and  less  than  seven 
thousand  whites  in  Haiti  and  the  Europeans  were 
helpless.  To  subdue  the  negroes,  a  force  of  sixty 
thousand  troops  and  a  fleet  of  men-of-war  were  sent  by 
Napoleon  and  the  blacks  retreated  to  the  mountains. 
Toussaint  was  captured  and  died  in  a  French  prison, 
but  his  followers  committed  awful  butcheries,  yellow 
fever  aided  them,  and  the  French  troops  succumbed  by 
thousands.  The  French,  under  Rochambeau,  strove 
to  outdo  the  negroes  in  atrocities  and  the  blacks 
retaliated  in  kind  and  as  a  result  Haiti  literally  ran 
with  blood.  Only  the  arrival  of  a  British  force  saved 
the  French  from  annihilation  and  they  gladly  sur- 
rendered to  their  white  enemies.  After  the  evacu- 
ation by  the  French  in  1804,  the  blacks  and  colored 
people  swore  to  renounce  France  and  under  Dessalines 
butchered  the  few  remaining  whites,  and,  ever  since, 
the  island  has  been  in  possession  of  the  negro  race, 
although  subject  to  many  conflicts  among  them- 
selves and  with  their  neighbors  of  the  Dominican 
Republic  and  European  powers. 

Places  of  interest  are  the  ruins  of  the  Black  King's 
Castle,  Sans  Souci,  at  Cape  Haitien,  La  Coupe,  the 
summer  residence  of  the  better  class  of  people  of  Port- 
au-Prince,  and  the  few  public  buildings  of  the  towns. 

No  decent  hotels  or  boarding  houses,  although 
accommodations,  of  a  sort,  may  be  had  in  the  larger 
towns. 


400  APPENDIX 

Reached  by  Royal  Dutch  West  India  Line  from 
New  York  and,  under  normal  conditions,  by  steamers 
of  Hamburg- American  (Atlas)  Line. 

Language,  French  among  better  classes;  patois, 
or  colloquial,  French  among  lower  classes.  Currency, 
Haitien,  but  United  States  and  British  as  well  as 
French  currency  is  in  circulation. 

ISLE  OF  PINES 

An  island  sixty  miles  off  the  southern  coast  of  Cuba 
and  belonging  to  that  republic. 

About  900  square  miles  in  area,  or  about  575,000 
acres.  Approximately  one  fourth  of  the  island  is  low 
and  swampy,  and  inundated  in  rainy  seasons;  the  re- 
mainder high,  broken,  and  mountainous.  Much  arable 
and  fertile  land,  many  rich  valleys,  and  well  watered 
with  rivers  and  streams. 

Well  forested  with  mahogany,  pine,  and  other  timber 
trees  and  with  many  mineral  springs. 

Population  mainly  citizens  of  United  States  who 
have  exploited  the  island  as  a  tropical  Eden  and  a  spot 
where  fortunes  may  be  made  in  lands  and  fruit 
growing. 

Chief  port,  Nueva  Gerona.  Santa  Fe  is  seventeen 
miles  inland. 

Chief  products  and  exports:  mineral  waters,  timber, 
fruit;  marble  quarries  are  in  the  Crystal  Hills, — 
Cerros  de  los  Cristales, — and  wild  game  abounds. 

Formerly  a  famous  resort  for  pirates  and  later  for 
wreckers,  and  used  as  a  penal  settlement  by  the 
Spaniards. 


APPENDIX  401 

Climate  healthy  and  delightful,  save  in  the  rainy 
season. 

Places  of  interest  nil,  aside  from  the  various  colonies 
and  buildings  erected  by  Americans. 

Hotels  and  boarding  places  in  the  towns. 

Reached  by  steamer  from  Batabano,  thirty-six 
miles  by  railway  from  Havana. 

Language,  mainly  English,  although  Spanish  is 
spoken  by  the  native  Cubans.  Currency,  as  in  Cuba 
(officially),  but  United  States  currency  in  common  use. 

JAMAICA 

A  British  island,  third  largest  of  the  Greater  Antilles, 
situated  90  miles  south  of  eastern  Cuba  and  100  miles 
southwest  of  Santo  Domingo.  Approximately  1500 
miles  from  New  York  and  540  miles  from  Colon. 

About  145  miles  in  length  and  50  in  width  with  an 
area  of  4207  square  miles  or  2,692,587  acres  of  which 
some  100,000  acres  are  under  cultivation. 

A  mountainous  island,  with  highest  peak  of  Blue 
Mountains  7360  feet  above  the  sea.  Many  lesser 
peaks  are  from  4000  to  6000  feet.  No  active  volcanic 
craters.  Of  very  ancient  formation.  Abundantly 
watered,  with  innumerable  rivers  and  streams,  few 
of  which  are  navigable.  Well  wooded,  fertile,  and 
luxuriant. 

Population  about  700,000.  Capital,  Kingston,  with 
about  50,000  inhabitants.  Other  important  towns 
are:  Port  Royal  across  the  bay  from  Kingston,  Span- 
ish Town,  Mandeville,  2200  feet  above  the  sea  and  a 
36 


402  APPENDIX 

famous  health  resort,  Montego  Bay,  on  the  north 
coast,  Ewarton,  Moneague,  Port  Antonio,  the  head- 
quarters of  the  banana  industry,  Port  Morant,  St. 
Ann's,  Savanna  la  Mar  in  the  southwest  and  the  port 
for  the  logwood  district,  as  well  as  many  smaller 
towns,  villages,  etc. 

Jamaica's  industries  are  agricultural,  as  are  her 
resources,  and  although  gold,  copper,  manganese,  and 
other  metals  occur  they  have  never  been  worked  on  a 
commercially  profitable  scale.  The  principal  exports 
are  fruits,  mainly  bananas  and  oranges,  dye  and  cabi- 
net woods,  coffee,  sugar,  rum,  pimento,  cocoanuts, 
cocoa,  and  various  other  tropical  products. 

Climate  delightfully  cool  and  extremely  healthy 
in  the  highlands  and  seldom  unbearably  hot  in  the 
coastal  towns,  except  on  the  southern  coast  out  of 
reach  of  the  trade  winds. 

Discovered  by  Columbus  in  1494.  In  1502-04,  on 
his  last  voyage  to  the  West  Indies,  Columbus  beached 
his  vessels,  which  were  unseaworthy,  on  the  north 
coast  of  Jamaica  and  remained  there  for  a  year,  until 
rescued  by  an  expedition  sent  from  Santo  Domingo. 
The  spot  where  he  spent  those  twelve  months  of 
suffering,  mutiny,  and  hardship  is  known  as  Don 
Christopher's  Cove  and  is  between  St.  Ann's  Bay  and 
Annotta  Bay.  First  settled  by  Spanish  at  "Sevilla 
Nueva,"  now  St.  Ann's,  and  later  on  the  southern 
coast  at  Old  Harbor  and  other  points.  Spanish  Town, 
then  called  Santiago  de  la  Vega,  was  founded  in 
1520. 

Spanish  occupation  continued  until  1655,  when  the 


APPENDIX  403 

English,  under  Admiral  Penn  and  General  Venables, 
conquered  the  island.  First  British  governor  ap- 
pointed 1661,  and  capital  established  at  Spanish  Town, 
1664.  In  1670,  Jamaica  was  formally  ceded  to  the 
British. 

On  June  7, 1692,  Port  Royal,  which  had  become  the 
headquarters  of  the  buccaneers  and  was  famed  as  the 
"richest  and  wickedest  city  in  the  world,"  was  de- 
stroyed by  an  earthquake.  The  town,  with  three 
thousand  houses,  most  of  its  inhabitants,  and  all  its 
wealth,  slipped  into  the  sea.  Captain  Henry  Mor- 
gan,— the  noted  pirate, — after  the  sack  of  Panama, 
was  made  governor  of  the  island. 

During  the  years  of  warfare  between  Spanish  and 
British,  thousands  of  slaves  escaped  and  fled  to  the 
mountain  forests,  where  they  developed  into  a  race 
of  semi-savages  known  as  "Maroons."  From  1730- 
34  these  "Maroons"  constantly  harassed  the  planters 
and  settlements,  but  were  so  strongly  fortified  in  the 
forests  that  all  expeditions  sent  against  them  were 
defeated.  Not  until  2500  acres  of  land  were  ceded 
permanently  to  the  Maroons  and  freedom  granted 
them  by  treaty,  were  the  Jamaicans  left  in  peace. 
In  1760  occurred  a  serious  slave  uprising,  and  in  1795 
the  Maroons  again  attacked  the  whites  and  for  a  year 
desperate  warfare  was  waged  against  them.  At  last  a 
new  treaty  was  made,  and  more  than  five  hundred  of 
the  Maroons  were  exiled  to  Sierra  Leone  and  Nova 
Scotia. 

In  1744  Savanna  la  Mar  was  destroyed  by  earth- 
quake, and  other  tremors  caused  considerable  damage 


404  APPENDIX 

from  time  to  time.  In  1838  emancipation  of  slaves 
was  proclaimed,  but  in  1865  another  outbreak  of  the 
blacks  occurred  and  Montego  Bay  was  attacked  and 
many  whites  slaughtered.  The  uprising  was  finally 
quelled  by  troops,  and  the  ringleader,  S.  W.  Gordon,  a 
planter,  merchant,  and  politician,  was  arrested  and 
hanged. 

Since  that  time  the  most  important  events  in  Ja- 
maica's history  have  been  earthquakes  and  hurricanes. 
In  1880  a  hurricane  killed  thirty  people  in  Kingston, 
destroyed  most  of  the  wharves  and  many  houses,  and 
did  a  vast  amount  of  damage,  and  in  December,  1882, 
a  fire  devastated  forty  acres  of  the  town  and  destroyed 
six  hundred  buildings,  causing  a  loss  of  over  one 
million  dollars.  On  August  n,  1903,  another  hurri- 
cane swept  Jamaica,  destroying  crops,  buildings, 
and  cultivation  and  entailing  a  loss  estimated  at 
over  ten  million  dollars.  But  by  far  the  worst 
of  such  catastrophes  was  the  earthquake,  and  sub- 
sequent fire,  which  practically  destroyed  Kingston 
and  caused  terrific  damage  in  other  places  on  Janu- 
ary 14,  1907.  During  this  quake  over  one  thousand 
lives  were  lost  and  the  most  important  streets  and 
buildings  of  Kingston  were  converted  to  worthless 
ruins.  But  the  island  quickly  recovered  and  the 
town  was  rebuilt.  An  important  event  of  more 
recent  date  was  the  stupendous  production  of  a 
moving-picture  film  which  took  place  in  Jamaica  in 
1915-16.  This  film,  which  cost  over  one  million 
dollars,  required  thousands  of  people,  the  erection 
of  a  large  city,  and  an  unprecedented  demand  for 


APPENDIX  405 

labor,  supplies,  and  accommodations,  and  placed 
a  tremendous  amount  of  money  in  circulation  in 
Jamaica. 

Places  of  interest  are  very  numerous.  In  Kingston 
and  its  vicinity  are  King's  House,  Institute  of  Jamaica, 
where  are  the  famous  "Shark  Papers,"  Race  Course, 
Hope  and  Castleton  Gardens,  Port  Royal,  Fort 
Charles.  Scenic  and  other  attractions  are  Bog  Walk, 
Rio  Cobre,  Spanish  Town,  Dry  River,  Chinchona 
Plantation,  caves  at  Ewarton,  St.  Elizabeth,  St. 
Thomas,  River  Head,  Dry  River,  etc.,  Roaring 
River  Falls  and  Fern  Valley,  near  Moneague,  Natural 
Bridge  near  Riversdale,  Cane  River  Falls,  Don  Christo- 
pher's Cove,  near  Annotta  Bay,  Milk  River  Baths  and 
hot  springs. 

Hotels  of  the  highest  class,  boarding  places,  and 
furnished  cottages  and  bungalows  are  numerous  in  all 
important  towns  and  resorts. 

Over  two  thousand  miles  of  good  roads  and  nu- 
merous railway  lines,  as  well  as  coastal  steam- 
boats, afford  easy  access  to  all  parts  of  the  island. 
Horses,  carriages,  motor  cars,  boats,  and  launches  for 
hire. 

Reached  by  United-  Fruit  Co.  (about  five  days) 
from  New  York  and  Gulf  ports,  and,  under  normal 
shipping  conditions,  by  Royal  Mail  Steam  Packet 
Co. 

Language,  English.  Currency,  British,  but  Colonial 
Bank  and  Royal  Bank  of  Canada  notes  and  United 
States  currency  in  circulation  and  terms  "dollars  and 
cents"  used  almost  universally. 


406  APPENDIX 

LEEWARD  ISLANDS 

A  group  of  islands  forming  a  confederation  under 
British  rule  and  which  includes  St.  Kitts,  Nevis, 
Antigua,  Barbuda,  Montserrat,  Dominica,  Anguilla, 
and  the  British  Virgin  Islands. 

Five  presidencies  make  up  the  confederation  and 
areas  follows:  St.  Kitts,  Nevis,  and  Anguilla;  Antigua, 
Barbuda,  and  Redonda;  Montserrat;  Dominica;  Vir- 
gin Islands. 

Each  presidency  has  an  administrator,  or  commis- 
sioner, while  the  governor-general  has  his  residence 
and  seat  of  government  in  Antigua. 

See  descriptions  of  individual  islands. 

MARGARITA  OR  "PEARL  ISLAND" 

A  dependency  of  Venezuela  off  the  coast  of  that 
country  and  about  twenty  miles  from  the  town  of 
Cumana. 

About  50  miles  long  by  5  to  20  miles  in  width.  Two 
mountain  ranges,  4000  feet  above  the  sea,  run'through 
the  island  which  is  nearly  divided  by  a  huge  lagoon. 
Mountainous  and  little  cultivated. 

Population  about  20,000.  Capital,  Asuncion. 
Chief  port,  Pampatar. 

Chief  products  and  exports,  pearls  and  pearl  shell, 
hammocks,  hats,  tiles,  and  lace. 

About  one  million  dollars'  worth  of  pearls  and  shell 
exported  annually.  Some  of  the  largest  pearls  in  the 
world  have  been  taken  from  the  waters  about  this 


APPENDIX  407 

island.  Pearls  first  discovered  at  Margarita  by  Colum- 
bus in  1498. 

Climate  dry  and  healthy. 

Few  places  of  interest  aside  from  pearl  fisheries. 

No  regular  hotels. 

Reached  by  Royal  Dutch  West  India  Line  from 
Cumana.  By  sailboat  and  packet  from  Venezuela, 
Trinidad,  and  Curacao. 

Language,  Spanish.     Currency  as  in  Venezuela. 

MARIE  GALANTE 

A  French  island  and  a  dependency  of  Guadeloupe. 
South  of  the  latter. 

Of  calcareous  formation,  terraced  in  form,  with  a 
flat  table-like  summit  seven  hundred  feet  in  height. 

Population  about  17,000,  mostly  blacks. 

Discovered  by  Columbus,  1493,  and  named  after 
his  flagship. 

No  hotels  or  boarding  places. 

Reached  by  small  boat  or  packet  from  Guadeloupe. 

Language  and  currency  as  in  Guadeloupe. 

MARTINIQUE 

A  French  colony  fifteen  miles  south  of  Dominica 
and  about  twenty  miles  north  of  St.  Lucia.  Birth- 
place of  Josephine,  Empress  of  France.  Scene  of 
most  disastrous  volcanic  eruption  of  modern  times. 
St.  Pierre,  capital  of  the  island,  destroyed  with  loss 


408  APPENDIX 

of  thirty  to  forty  thousand  lives  and  nearly  one  fourth 
of  island  devastated  by  Mt.  Petee,  May,  1902. 

Length  about  30  miles;  width  about  15  miles. 
Area  500  square  miles.  A  mountainous,  volcanic 
island,  rich,  and  luxuriant  with  forests  and  verdure. 
Highest  peak  is  Morne  Pele"e,  4400  feet. 

Population  about  200,000.  Capital  and  chief  port, 
Fort-de-France,  with  30,000  inhabitants. 

Chief  products,  cocoa,  sugar,  coffee,  spices,  and 
dye  and  cabinet  woods. 

Climate  hot  on  coast,  healthy  as  a  whole  and  de- 
lightfully cool  in  hills. 

Discovered  by  Columbus,  1502.  First  settled  by 
French  in  1635.  Seized  by  British  in  1762,  1781, 
1 794,  and  1 809,  and  ceded  to  France  in  1 8 1 4.  Uninter- 
ruptedly French  since. 

Places  of  interest  are  ruins  of  St.  Pierre,  crater  of  Mt. 
Pelde,  birthplace  of  Josephine  at  Trois  Islets,  church 
where  she  was  christened  at  Trois  Islets,  statue  of  the 
Empress  at  Fort-de-France,  old  Fort  Royal  at  Fort-de- 
France,  Canal  de  Gueydon,  Fort-de-France.  Scenery 
of  interior. 

Numerous  hotels  and  boarding  places  in  Fort-de- 
France. 

Motor  cars,  sailboats,  horses,  and  carriages  for  hire. 
Coastal  steamers  and  diligences  connect  principal 
towns. 

Reached  by  Quebec  S.  S.  Co.  (about  12  days)  from 
New  York,  Compagnie  Generale  Transatlantique 
from  French  colonies  and  Porto  Rico.  Language, 
French.  Currency  as  in  Guadeloupe. 


APPENDIX  409 

MONA 

An  island  off  the  western  coast  of  Porto  Rico  and 
property  of  United  States.  Barren,  scrub-covered, 
and  of  no  value  except  for  the  lighthouse.  A  favorite 
spot  for  Porto  Rican  sportsmen,  as  many  wild  fowl 
resort  to  it  and  there  are  wild  goats,  etc.,  on  the  island. 

MONTSERRAT 

A  British  island,  one  of  the  Leeward  Island  con- 
federation southeast  of  St.  Kitts  and  southwest  of 
Antigua. 

Length  about  twel ve  miles ;  width  seven  miles.  Vol- 
canic and  with  an  active  crater  known  as  the  "Sou- 
friere."  Very  mountainous  and  well  wooded  in  the 
central  and  northern  parts,  but  with  broad  valleys 
and  fertile  plains  sloping  from  central  range  of  moun- 
tains to  the  leeward  coast.  Highest  peak,  3000  feet. 

Population  about  14,000.  Capital  and  port,  Ply- 
mouth, with  about  6000  inhabitants.  Few  whites  on 
the  island. 

Chief  products,  Hmes  and  lime  juice,  sugar,  fruits, 
and  garden  truck. 

Climate  very  healthy  and  pleasant.  Average 
temperature  from  7O°-85°. 

Discovered  by  Columbus,  1493.  First  settled  by 
English,  1632.  Seized  by  French,  1664.  Recaptured 
by  British,  1668.  Retaken  by  French  in  1782.  Eng- 
lish since  1784.  Many  of  the  early  settlers  were  Irish 
and  their  traits  and  characters,  together  with  names, 


4io  APPENDIX 

have  been  transmitted  to  colored  people  now  living  on 
the  island. 

Little  of  interest,  aside  from  the  people  and  the 
crater  of  Soufriere. 

Reached  by  Royal  Mail  (Canadian)  boats  from 
Halifax,  Bermuda,  and  other  islands;  occasionally  by 
ships  of  Quebec  S.  S.  Co.,  and,  under  normal  condi- 
tions, by  intercolonial  boats  of  Royal  Mail  Steam 
Packet  Co. 

No  good  hotels  or  boarding  places. 

Language,  English,  usually  with  a  distinct  brogue. 
Currency,  British,  with  Colonial  and  Royal  Bank  of 
Canada  notes. 

NEVIS 

One  of  the  British  Leeward  Islands  a  few  miles  south 
of  St.  Kitts  and  under  government  of  latter. 

Of  volcanic  formation  with  a  very  perfect,  extinct 
volcanic  cone  about  4000  feet  in  height.  Bulk  of  land 
fairly  level  and  sloping  gently  to  base  of  mountain. 
Area  about  50  square  miles  or  35,000  acres,  about  half 
of  which  are,  or  have  been,  under  cultivation. 

Capital  and  port,  Charlestown.  Formerly  James- 
town was  the  capital,  but  on  April  30,  1689,  this  town 
was  submerged  by  an  earthquake.  The  ruins  are  still 
visible  beneath  the  sea. 

Principal  products,  sugar,  molasses,  cotton,  and 
some  sisal. 

Climate  exceedingly  healthy  and  pleasant.  At 
one  time  famous  as  a  health  resort  and  watering  place 


APPENDIX  411 

throughout  the  West  Indies,  Europe,  and  America. 
Many  hot  and  medicinal  springs  on  the  island. 

Discovered  by  Columbus,  1493,  and  named  "Nieve" 
from  the  snow-like  effect  of  clouds  about  the  moun- 
tain summit. 

Famous  as  birthplace  of  Alexander  Hamilton,  and 
as  spot  where  Admiral  Nelson  was  married. 

Places  of  interest  are  the  ruins  of  Hamilton's  House, 
Old  Fig  Tree  Church  and  marriage  register  contain- 
ing entry  of  Nelson's  wedding,  ruins  of  once  famous 
"Bath  House,"  thermal  springs,  and  submerged  city. 

No  hotels  or  boarding  houses,  but  accommodations 
may  be  obtained  in  private  houses  at  Charlestown. 
Horses  and  carriages  for  hire. 

Reached  by  sailboat  or  packet  from  St.  Kitts.  By 
Royal  Mail  (Canadian)  boats  from  Halifax,  Bermuda, 
and  other  islands,  and  occasionally  by  ships  of  Que- 
bec S.  S.  Co. 

Language  and  currency  as  at  St.  Kitts. 

NORMAN  ISLAND 

A  small  and  unimportant  islet  of  the  British  Virgin 
Island  group.  South  of  Tortola.  Area  about  two 
thousand  acres. 

Formerly  a  resort  of  pirates  and  buccaneers.  Treas- 
ure is  reputed  buried  here. 

ORUBA 

One  of  the  Dutch  islands  under  government  of 
Curacao  and  west  of  the  latter  at  the  entrance  to 
Gulf  of  Maracaibo. 


4i2  APPENDIX 

Area  about  75  square  miles. 

Population  about  1000. 

Chief  products,  aloes,  salt,  fish,  goats,  and  sheep. 

No  hotels. 

Reached  by  packet  from  Maracaibo  or  Curacao. 

Language  and  money  as  in  Curasao. 

PORTO  Rico 

A  colony  of  the  United  States,  one  of  the  Greater 
Antilles,  situated  about  forty  miles  west  of  St.  Thomas 
and  fifty  miles  east  of  Santo  Domingo. 

Smallest  of  the  Greater  Antilles,  about  100  miles 
long  by  36  miles  wide.  Area  about  3500  square  miles. 
Very  mountainous  and  rugged  in  the  interior,  with 
broad  valleys,  tablelands,  and  plains.  Once  heavily 
wooded,  but  now  almost  denuded  of  forests,  save  in 
the  northern  forest  reserve  and  in  isolated  mountain- 
ous districts.  Highest  peak,  El  Yunque,  3600  feet. 
Very  fertile  and  well  watered  with  numerous  rivers, 
none  of  which  are  navigable. 

Population  about  a  million,  of  whom  less  than 
fifty  thousand  are  negroes,  the  principal  population 
being  of  almost  pure  Spanish  descent,  although  there 
are  many  colored  and  mixed  races.  Capital  and  chief 
port,  San  Juan,  on  the  northern  coast,  with  about 
fifty  thousand  inhabitants. 

Ponce,  on  the  southern  coast,  and  Mayaguez  on  the 
west,  as  well  as  Arecibo,  are  all  important  ports. 
Many  coastal  and  interior  towns  of  great  value  and 
importance  are  connected  by  excellent  roads  or  by 


APPENDIX  413 

railway  with  the  capital  and  various  ports.  The 
island  is  divided  into  sixty-nine  districts,  or  municipali- 
ties, each  of  which  is  practically  autonomous.  In 
most  cases  the  chief  town  is  of  the  same  name  as  its 
municipality. 

The  resources  of  Porto  Rico  are  very  great,  but  are 
mainly  agricultural,  although  gold,  iron,  copper,  and 
other  minerals  occur  and  have  not  been  exploited. 
Principal  products  are  sugar,  tobacco,  fruits,  vege- 
tables, and  coffee. 

Climate  very  pleasant  and  exceedingly  healthy, 
Porto  Rico  ranking  second  healthiest  country  in  the 
world.  On  the  coasts  the  climate  is  rather  hot,  but  in 
the  hills  and  mountains  it  is  cool  and  pleasant.  Aver- 
age temperature  of  coastal  districts  for  summer  80°, 
for  winter  75°.  Average  humidity  at  San  Juan,  for 
winter  75°;  for  summer  81°.  Rainfall  from  forty-five 
inches  in  dryer  districts,  to  two  hundred  inches  per 
year  in  wettest  districts. 

Discovered  by  Columbus  in  1493.  In  search  of 
water  Columbus  landed  at  or  near  the  present  site  of 
Aguadilla  and  named  the  island  San  Juan  Bautista, 
the  native  name  being  Borinquen.  On  board  of  one  of 
Columbus's  ships  was  Juan  Ponce  de  Leon  who  was  so 
attracted  by  the  new  land  that  in  1508  he  sailed 
from  Santo  Domingo  and  landed  near  the  present 
town  of  Aguada.  Traveling  eastward  he  found  a 
sheltered  bay  which  he  christened  Puerto  Rico,  and 
being  well  received  by  the  Indians  he  returned  to 
Santo  Domingo  and  related  his  discoveries  to  Governor 
Ovando.  The  latter  furnished  De  Leon  with  sup- 


414  APPENDIX 

plies  and  men  to  settle  Puerto  Rico,  where  he  landed 
in  1509.  At  a  spot  he  called  Caparra  he  started  a 
settlement  which  was  later  abandoned  in  favor  of  the 
present  site  of  San  Juan.  From  here  he  set  forth 
on  his  famous  search  for  the  Fountain  of  Youth,  and 
in  1512  he  sailed  again,  but  was  wounded  by  an  In- 
dian's arrow  and  died  in  Havana. 

From  1516  until  1798  the  island  was  constantly 
attacked  by  invaders  and  in  1535  and  1543  the  French 
sacked  and  burned  several  towns.  In  1565,  Sir 
John  Hawkins  tried  his  hand  at  taking  Porto  Rico 
and  in  1572  the  famous  privateer,  Sir  Francis  Drake, 
also  attacked  it,  but  both  were  driven  off.  In  1595 
they  tried  once  more,  attracted  by  vast  treasure  on 
galleons  in  the  harbor,  but  they  were  badly  beaten, 
Hawkins  dying  off  the  eastern  coast  of  the  island 
and  Drake  succumbing  ere  he  reached  Porto  Bello, 
towards  which  he  set  sail.  Once  more,  in  1597,  the 
British  attacked  San  Juan  with  a  fleet  of  twenty 
ships  under  Lord  Cumberland.  They  landed  at 
Santurce,  and  were  on  the  brink  of  victory  when 
pestilence  broke  out  among  the  troops  and  they 
were  compelled  to  abandon  the  siege.  In  1625  a  fleet 
of  Dutch  ships  bombarded  the  fortresses  of  San  Juan, 
but  without  success.  The  next  serious  attack  was  in 
1797,  when  Sir  Ralph  Abercromby  landed  at  San- 
turce, and  after  two  weeks  of  furious  hand-to-hand 
fighting  the  British  were  driven  off  with  great  loss. 
Not  until  one  hundred  years  later  was  the  island 
seriously  disturbed.  Then  the  war  vessels  of  the 
United  States,  under  Admiral  Sampson,  shelled  San 


APPENDIX  415 

Juan's  forts,  but  with  scarcely  more  effect  than 
the  fleets  of  Drake  and  Hawkins,  and  the  Porto 
Ricans  were  left  in  peace  until  the  United  States 
troops  landed  on  the  southern  coast  and  marched 
overland,  to  be  halted  near  Cayey  by  the  news  that 
the  peace  protocol  had  been  signed.  In  August,  1898, 
the  island  was  formally  given  over  to  the  United 
States. 

Places  of  interest  are  numerous,  especially  about 
San  Juan.  Among  them  may  be  mentioned  the 
Morro,  San  Sebastian,  and  San  Cristobal  forts,  San 
Geronimo,  Casa  Blanca  or  house  of  Ponce  de  Leon, 
San  Juan  church  and  statue  of  Ponce  de  Leon,  the 
cathedral,  with  tomb  of  Ponce  de  Leon,  old  palace, 
now  the  governor's  residence,  old  city  wall  and  gates, 
prison,  old  churches,  statue  of  Columbus,  and  Colon 
Plaza,  etc.  In  the  outlying  country  are  many  interest- 
ing sights  and  in  nearly  every  town  are  places  of 
historic  or  other  interest. 

Several  fair  hotels  and  boarding  places  in  San 
Juan  and  many  excellent  boarding  houses  and  a 
first-class  hotel  at  Santurce.  Several  hotels  in  Ponce 
and  hotels  more  or  less  comfortable  in  every  town  of 
any  size.  Innumerable  automobiles  for  hire,  regular 
motor  car  service  over  the  island,  many  "jitney"  lines, 
trolley  cars,  and  steam  railways. 

Reached  by  New  York  &  Porto  Rico  Line  (about  4 
days)  from  New  York  or  by  Red  "D"  Line  steamers 
from  New  York  and  from  Venezuela  and  Curasao. 
Under  normal  conditions  by  various  British,  French, 
Italian,  and  German  steamers  from  Colon,  Jamaica, 


416  APPENDIX 

St.  Thomas,  Europe,  South  America,  and  the  other 
West  Indian  islands. 

Language,  officially"  English.  Practically  all  the 
Porto  Ricans  use  Spanish  exclusively  and  few  outside 
of  the  larger  towns  understand  or  speak  English.  In 
the  stores,  hotels,  and  offices  and  on  the  railways, 
trolley  lines,  and  public  conveyances  there  is  usually 
someone  who  speaks  English. 

Currency  the  same  as  in  United  States. 

REDONDA 

A  lofty,  isolated  rock  belonging  to  Antigua  and 
west  of  the  latter,  about  midway  between  St.  Kitts 
and  Montserrat. 

Altitude  about  1000  feet. 

Population  (when  mining  operations  are  going  on) 
about  100,  mostly  black  laborers. 

Only  product,  phosphate  rock. 

SABA 

A  Dutch  island  between  St.  Kitts  and  St.  Croix. 
About  40  miles  west  of  St.  Kitts. 

Merely  an  enormous  volcanic  cone  rising  abruptly 
from  the  sea  for  3000  feet.  Area  about  5  square  miles. 
No  harbor  or  safe  anchorage.  Upper  mountain 
sides  verdured,  lower  slopes  grown  over  with  stunted 
brush,  creepers,  and  cacti.  No  heavy  forests.  Inte- 
rior valleys  and  hillsides  fertile  and  cultivated  where- 
ever  possible. 


APPENDIX  417 

Population  about  2000.  Chief  town,  Bottom,  situ- 
ated about  1000  feet  above  the  sea  in  a  crater  and 
with  about  1500  inhabitants.  Rest  of  people  live  at 
smaller  villages,  or  "districts,"  known  as  Windward 
Side,  Hell's  Gate,  St.  John's,  and  Leverack's  Town. 
No  wheeled  vehicles,  all  traveling  being  done  afoot, 
on  horseback,  or  in  chairs  carried  by  negroes. 

Chief  products,  fruit,  vegetables, — including  white 
potatoes  and  other  temperate  vegetables  and  fruits, — 
lace  and  drawn-work,  and  boats.  Men  mainly  sailors, 
many  of  them  officers  of  steamships  and  trans- 
atlantic liners. 

Climate  extremely  healthy  and  pleasant,  perpetu- 
ally spring-like  or  temperate,  rather  than  tropical.  . 

Places  of  interest  are  the  "Ladder,"  a  flight  of 
eight  hundred  stone  steps  leading  from  landing  place  to 
town;  the  Devil's  Warming  Pan,  a  hot  stone  which 
is  never  wet  or  cool,  even  in  the  hardest  rains;  the 
Sulphur  Mine,  and  the  town  of  Bottom. 

No  hotels  or  boarding  houses. 

Reached  by  small  boat  from  St.  Kitts  or  St.  Eusta- 
tius. 

Language,  Dutch,  but  English  understood  and  used 
by  nearly  everyone.  Currency  as  in  Curacao,  but 
British  money  readily  accepted. 

SAINTES  (THE) 

Small,  rocky,  volcanic  islands  belonging  to  Guade- 
loupe and  south  of  the  latter.  About  1000  feet  in 
height. 


4i8  APPENDIX 

SAINT  BARTHOLOMEW,  COMMONLY  CALLED  ST. 
BART'S 

A  French  island  and  dependency  of  Guadeloupe, 
40  miles  north  of  St.  Kitts. 

Hilly,  with  one  peak  rising  to  1000  feet.  No  fresh 
water  ponds  or  streams.  Area  about  8  square 
miles. 

Population  about  3000,  nearly  all  black  or  colored. 

Capital  and  port,  Gustavia. 

Belonged  to  Sweden  until  1878,  when  ceded  to 
present  owners.  At  one  time  resort  of  pirates  and 
buccaneers.  Vast  treasure  supposed  to  be  buried  on 
the  island  by  Montbars,  known  as  "The  Extermi- 
nator," and  who  had  headquarters  here. 

No  hotels  or  boarding  places. 

Reached  by  small  boat  from  neighboring  islands. 

Currency  and  language  as  in  Guadeloupe,  but 
English  generally  spoken  or  understood. 

SAINT  CHRISTOPHER,  MORE  COMMONLY  CALLED 
ST.  KITTS 

One  of  the  British  Leeward  Islands,  sometimes 
called  the  "Mother  of  the  British  West  Indies,"  as  it 
was  the  first  of  the  Lesser  Antilles  settled  by  the 
British. 

Volcanic,  with  an  active  crater,  Mount  Misery, 
about  4000  feet  above  the  sea.  Area  about  75  square 
miles,  much  of  which  is  cultivated.  Fertile,  well 
watered,  and  with  mountains  heavily  wooded. 


APPENDIX  419 

Population  about  35,000.  Capital,  Basseterre,  with 
about  12,000  inhabitants. 

Principal  products,  sugar,  molasses,  and  rum. 

Climate  healthy  and  agreeable. 

Discovered  by  Columbus  in  1493  and  named  in  honor 
of  his  patron  saint,  owing  to  a  fancied  resemblance 
of  its  mountains  to  St.  Christopher  bearing  the  infant 
Jesus  on  his  shoulder.  Not  named  after  Columbus 
himself  as  often  alleged.  First  settled  by  the  British  in 
1623.  Made  untenable  by  pirates,  whose  settlements 
were  finally  destroyed  and  buccaneers  driven  away  by 
combined  attack  of  French,  English,  and  Spanish  in 
1630.  Taken  by  the  French  in  1782,  but  ceded  to 
England  in  1783. 

Places  of  interest  are  not  numerous  about  Basse- 
terre, but  there  is  a  pretty  public  garden  and  the 
roads  are  excellent.  Outside  of  the  city  the  main 
points  of  interest  are  Monkey  Hill,  Fort  Brimstone, 
Mount  Misery  Crater,  Wingfield  Estate  Cataract, 
Lawyer  Stevens's  Cave,  etc. 

Several  boarding  places  and  one  or  two  fair  hotels 
at  Basseterre. 

Horses,  carriages,  and  motor  cars  for  hire. 

Reached  by  Quebec  S.  S.  Co.  (about  8  days) 
from  New  York.  By  Royal  Mail  (Canadian)  Line 
from  Bermuda,  Halifax,  and  other  British  islands, 
and,  under  normal  conditions,  by  Royal  Mail  Steam 
Packet  Co. 

Language,  English.  Currency,  British,  with  Royal 
Bank  of  Canada  and  Colonial  Bank  notes  in  cir- 
culation. 


420  APPENDIX 

SANTA  CRUZ  OR  ST.  CROIX 

An  island  about  60  miles  south  of  St.  Thomas  and 
100  miles  west  of  St.  Kitts.  One  of  the  former  Danish 
islands,  transferred  to  the  United  States  in  1917. 

A  hilly,  limestone  island  about  20  miles  long  and  6 
miles  wide.  Area  about  75  square  miles  with  a  large 
portion  under  cultivation.  Fertile,  well  watered,  and 
luxuriant,  but  not  heavily  wooded. 

Population  about  30,000.  Capital,  Christiansted, 
on  eastern  coast.  Chief  port,  Frederiksted,  on  western 
coast. 

Chief  products,  sugar,  rum,  molasses,  and  some  fruit. 

Climate  hot  in  the  towns,  but  very  equable  and 
healthy  and  formerly  a  noted  health  resort. 

Discovered  by  Columbus,  1493.  Settled  by  Dutch 
and  English  in  1625.  Later  taken  by  Spaniards  and 
French,  and  in  1653  sold  by  Louis  XIV  to  the  Knights 
of  Malta  who  were  succeeded  by  the  French  West 
India  Company  in  1665.  Deserted  until  1733,  when 
sold  by  French  to  Denmark  for  $375,000.  In 
1867,  Santa  Cruz  was  subjected  to  an  immense  tidal 
wave  which  reached  a  height  of  sixty  feet  and  carried 
the  vessels  in  the  harbor  high  and  dry  far  from  shore. 
Among  the  ships  which  were  thus  stranded  was  the 
United  States  frigate  Monongahela  which  was  left 
standing  upright  among  the  buildings  of  the  town 
beyond  a  row  of  cocoanut  trees,  the  ship  actually 
having  been  carried  over  the  palm  trees.  The  vessel 
was  launched  after  months  of  labor  and  was  practi- 
cally unharmed  and  left  under  her  own  steam.  In 


APPENDIX  421 

1878  a  negro  insurrection  caused  considerable  damage, 
and  occasional  hurricanes  have  varied  the  monotony 
of  the  lives  of  the  natives  since  then. 

No  particular  spots  of  interest. 

Fairly  comfortable  semi-hotels  and  boarding 
places. 

Reached  by  Quebec  S.  S.  Co.  (about  7  days)  from 
New  York. 

Horses,  carriages,  and  automobiles  for  hire. 

Language,  English  (except  among  Danes).  Cur- 
rency, Danish  West  Indian,  but  United  States  money 
accepted. 

SAINT  JOHN 

Smallest  of  the  three  former  Danish  islands  and  a 
few  miles  east  of  St.  Thomas. 

Rugged,  heavily  wooded,  well  watered,  and  once 
cultivated. 

Length  about  9  miles;  width  about  5  miles.  Area 
about  21  square  miles. 

Population  about  2000,  nearly  all  negroes. 

Chief  products,  bay  leaves  and  bay  oil. 

Port,  Coral  Bay,  with  a  splendid  harbor,  one  of  the 
best  in  the  West  Indies. 

Formerly  a  rendezvous  of  buccaneers.  Rusty  can- 
non and  ruined  pirate  forts  are  to  be  found  overgrown 
with  vines  and  brush. 

Settled  by  the  Danes  in  1684. 

No  hotels  or  boarding  places. 

Reached  by  packet  from  St.  Thomas. 

Language  and  currency  as  in  St.  Thomas. 


422  APPENDIX 

SAINT  KITTS 

The  West  Indian  name  for  St.  Christopher,  which 
see. 

SAINT  LUCIA 

A  British  island  of  the  Windward  Island  group. 
About  20  miles  north  of  St.  Vincent,  100  miles  west  of 
Barbados,  and  18  miles  south  of  Martinique. 

Volcanic,  with  an  active  crater,  the  Soufriere,  on 
southern  part  of  island.  Highest  peaks,  Morne 
Gimie  and  Piton  Canaries,  3000  feet;  Grand  and  Petit 
Pitons  rise  directly  from  the  sea  off  Soufriere  Bay 
to  a  height  of  2620  and  2460  feet.  Length  about  28 
miles;  width  about  15  miles.  Area  about  250  square 
miles.  Heavily  wooded,  fertile,  and  well  watered. 

Population  about  50,000.  Capital,  Castries,  with 
12,000  inhabitants.  An  important  coaling  station 
and  strongly  fortified.  Sometimes  called  "The  Gi- 
braltar of  West  Indies." 

Climate  hot  and  not  very  healthy  on  coast.  Cool 
and  salubrious  in  the  hills.  Infested  by  deadly  fer-de- 
lance  serpent. 

Chief  products,  cocoa,  limes,  spices,  fruits,  and 
dye  woods. 

Discovered  by  Columbus,  1502,  on  his  fourth  voy- 
age. First  settled  by  British,  1605,  when  sixty-seven 
colonists  arrived  in  Olive  Blossom.  They  were  at- 
tacked and  massacred  by  the  Caribs,  and  the  twenty 
survivors  fled  to  South  America  within  a  month 


APPENDIX  423 

after  landing  on  the  island.  In  1635,  French  settlers 
attempted  to  take  possession,  but  were  driven  out 
by  British  who  were  in  turn  killed  and  forced  off  by 
Caribs.  For  next  two  hundred  years  fought  over  by 
French  and  British  until  finally  ceded  to  England  in 
1814. 

Places  of  interest  are  the  Public  Gardens,  coaling 
docks,  Morne  and  Government  House,  Pitons,  Crater 
at  Soufriere. 

Several  hotels  and  boarding  places  at  Castries. 

Reached  by  Quebec  S.  S.  Co.  (about  14  days)  from 
New  York.  By  Royal  Mail  (Canadian)  Line  from 
Halifax,  Bermuda,  and  British  islands,  and,  under 
normal  conditions,  by  Royal  Mail  Steam  Packet 
Co. 

Language,  English.  Patois  or  Creole  spoken  by 
lower  classes.  Currency,  British,  but  Royal  Bank  of 
Canada  and  Colonial  Bank  notes  in  circulation. 

SAINT  MARTIN 

Jointly  French  and  Dutch,  the  northern  half  being 
under  the  jurisdiction  of  Guadeloupe  while  the  south- 
ern half  is  under  the  government  of  Curacao.  Situ- 
ated southwest  of  Anguilla  and  northwest  of  St. 
Kitts. 

A  wooded,  fertile,  mountainous  island.  Area  about 
40  square  miles.  Highest  peak,  Paradise  Peak,  1900 
feet. 

Population  of  entire  island  about  8000,  of  whom 
about  3000  reside  in  French  territory  and  5000  in 
Dutch. 


424  APPENDIX 

Capitals:  French,  Marigot.     Dutch,  Philipsburg. 

Chief  products,  salt,  vegetables,  and  cattle.  Copper 
and  manganese  occur. 

Climate  healthy  and  pleasant. 

Formerly  a  noted  resort  of  pirates  and  buccaneers. 

No  hotels. 

Reached  by  occasional  steamers  of  Quebec  Line,  but 
usually  only  by  sailing  vessels  or  packet  boats  from 
St.  Kitts,  St.  Croix,  St.  Thomas,  or  Curacao. 

Language,  Dutch  and  French  patois,  but  English 
quite  generally  spoken.  Currency  same  as  in  Dutch 
and  French  colonies. 

SAINT  THOMAS 

One  of  the  Virgin  Islands,  about  40  miles  east  of 
Porto  Rico.  Until  recently  Danish. 

Mountainous  but  dry,  barren,  and  little  cultivated. 
Length  about  13  miles;  width  about  3  miles.  Area 
about  33  square  miles. 

Population  about  15,000,  mostly  colored.  Capital 
and  only  port,  Charlotte  Amalie  (sometimes  spelled 
Amalia),  with  about  13,000  inhabitants. 

Formerly  of  great  commercial  importance,  as  it 
was  a  free  port  and  possesses  a  large  and  magnificent 
harbor.  Produces  practically  nothing  but  bay  rum. 
An  important  coaling  station. 

Climate  healthy  and  pleasant. 

Discovered  by  Columbus,  1493.  First  settled  by 
Danish  under  Erik  Smidt,  March  30,  1666.  Taken 
by  the  Dutch  under  Governor  Huntum.  Recolonized 


APPENDIX  425 

by  Danes,  under  Jorgen  Iwerson,  May  23,  1672. 
Iwerson,  who  was  sent  out  by  Danish  West  India  and 
Guinea  Company,  became  governor  and  was  a  most 
despotic  ruler,  but  under  him  the  island  prospered. 
Succeeded  by  Nic  Esmit,  to  whom  Iwerson  delivered 
the  governorship  upon  his  resignation.  Soon  after 
Iwerson  set  out  to  take  charge  again,  but  was  thrown 
overboard  by  his  mutinous  crew  on  the  voyage. 

On  April  9,  1690,  St.  Thomas  suffered  from  a  severe 
earthquake,  and  soon  after  the  entire  island  was 
leased  out  by  the  Danish  King  to  the  Brandenbergh 
Company  which  rapidly  developed  the  commerce 
of  the  island.  First  destructive  hurricane,  1697. 
In  1756  Dutch  commerce  was  excluded,  which  almost 
ruined  the  island,  and  the  King  of  Denmark  rescinded 
all  rights  of  the  Brandenberghs.  In  1800,  British, 
under  Colonel  Cowell,  seized  St.  Thomas,  but  within 
a  year  it  was  restored  to  Denmark.  In  1804  and 
1806,  island  swept  by  fires,  causing  damage  estimated 
at  over  sixteen  million  dollars. 

Again  occupied  by  the  British  in  1807  and  held  by 
them  until  April  9,  1815,  when  once  more  restored  to 
the  Danes.  In  1 866  ravaged  by  yellow  fever,  smallpox, 
and  cholera.  October  29,  1866,  loss  of  three  hundred 
lives  and  seventy-seven  vessels  and  immense  damage 
by  hurricane.  November  i8th  of  the  same  year  tidal 
wave  and  earthquake  did  enormous  damage.  Another 
disastrous  hurricane  occurred  in  1876,  after  which  the 
town  was  rebuilt,  sanitation  was  established,  and 
the  island  greatly  improved  and  modernized. 

Came  under  United  States  flag,  April  1917. 


426  APPENDIX 

Places  of  interest  are:  Bluebeard's  and  Black- 
beard's  Castles,  Ma  Falie,  from  which  a  magnificent 
view  may  be  obtained,  old  Danish  fort,  coaling  docks, 
Sail  Rock. 

Reached  by  Quebec  S.  S.  Co.,  from  New  York 
and  by  various  English,  French,  Italian,  Dutch,  Ger- 
man, and  other  lines  from  Europe  and  Porto  Rico. 

Language  officially  Danish  and  currency  that  of 
Denmark,  but  English  generally  spoken  except  by 
officials  and  any  money  gladly  accepted. 

A  few  fair  hotels  and  boarding  houses  in  Charlotte 
Amalie. 

SAINT  VINCENT 

One  of  the  British  Windward  Island  group,  about 
20  miles  south  of  St.  Lucia  and  100  miles  west  of 
Barbados. 

Volcanic,  mountainous,  fertile,  and  heavily  wooded. 
The  active  volcano,  known  as  "Soufriere,"  devastated 
an  immense  area  and  killed  many  people  in  1812  and 
in  May,  1902,  destroyed  2000  lives  and  over  one  third 
of  the  island. 

Highest  point,  Morne  Agarou,  4000  feet.  Length 
about  1 8  miles;  width  about  II  miles.  Area  about 
140  square  miles. 

Population  about  50,000.  Capital  and  chief  port, 
Kingstown,  with  5000  inhabitants. 

Principal  products,  cocoa,  sugar,  fruits,  arrowroot. 

Climate  very  pleasant  and  heal  thy,  one  of  the  health- 
iest islands  in  West  Indies.  Temperature  averages 
from  75°-8o°  the  year  round. 


APPENDIX 


427 


Places  of  interest:  Botanic  Gardens,  established  in 
1763,  and  first  of  their  kind  in  America,  old  forts, 
volcanic  district  and  crater,  Carib  settlement,  drives 
through  interior. 

No  really  good  hotel,  but  several  boarding  places. 

Reached  by  small  boat  or  packet  from  neighboring 
islands  or  by  Royal  Mail  (Canadian)  Line  from  Ber- 
muda, Halifax,  or  other  English  islands. 

Language,  English.  Many  of  the  natives  speak 
patois  or  Creole  by  preference.  Currency,  British, 
with  Colonial  and  Royal  Bank  of  Canada  notes  in 
circulation. 

SAN  DOMINGO,  PROPERLY  SANTO  DOMINGO 

Second  largest  of  the  Greater  Antilles.  Situated 
about  65  miles  west  of  Porto  Rico  and  50  miles  east 
of  Cuba.  Divided  into  two  independent  republics, 
the  eastern  two  thirds  forming  the  Dominican  Re- 
public, the  remainder  comprising  the  republic  of 
Haiti  or,  as  it  is  often  called,  "The  Black  Republic." 

A  very  large  island,  about  500  miles  in  length  and 
175  miles  wide,  with  an  area  of  nearly  30,000  square 
miles.  About  the  size  of  Maine;  one  fourth  larger 
than  Vermont,  Massachusetts,  Rhode  Island,  and 
Connecticut  combined;  three  times  the  size  of  Bel- 
gium; twice  as  large  as  Denmark,  and  only  a  trifle 
smaller  than  Ireland  or  Portugal. 

In  addition  to  the  main  island  there  are  the  depend- 
ent islands  of  Gonaivcs,  Tortuga,  Saona,  Alta  Vela, 
and  Beata,  some  of  which  are  larger  than  any  of  the 


428  APPENDIX 

Lesser  Antilles  and  which  add  over  600  square  miles 
to  the  total  area.  Extremely  mountainous,  the  high- 
est peak  in  the  West  Indies  being  Mount  Loma  Tina 
in  the  Dominican  Republic,  about  11,000  feet,  with 
numerous  peaks  over  6000  feet  in  height.  Between 
the  mountain  ranges  are  many  wide  elevated  plains, 
broad  fertile  valleys,  immense  tablelands,  and  near 
the  coasts  vast  rolling  prairies  or  savannas.  Heav- 
ily forested  with  valuable  timber,  such  as  mahogany, 
cedar,  lancewood,  ebony,  logwood,  lignum-vitse,  and 
long  leaf  pine.  Contains  vast  mineral  resources,  such 
as  gold,  mercury,  manganese,  lignite,  iron,  copper, 
lead,  tin,  bismuth,  nickel,  alum,  kaolin,  petroleum, 
salt,  amber,  etc. 

Well  watered  with  three  enormous  rivers  in  the 
Dominican  Republic  and  with  numerous  smaller 
rivers  and  countless  streams.  Three  huge  lakes  in 
the  southwestern  part  of  the  island.  Only  a  small 
portion  of  the  island  is  under  cultivation. 

Population  over  two  million  (exact  numbers  un- 
obtainable), of  whom  about  600,000  reside  in  the 
Dominican  Republic,  while  the  Haitiens  number  about 
1,500,000.  Practically  all  the  Haitien  population  is 
black,  while  the  people  of  the  Dominican  Republic 
are  mainly  white  or  light  colored,  only  about  20  per 
cent,  being  of  pronounced  negro  blood. 

Capital  of  the  Dominican  Republic,  Santo  Domingo 
City  on  the  Ozama  River  on  the  southern  coast,  with 
about  30,000  inhabitants.  Capital  of  Haiti,  Port-au- 
Prince,  with  about  70,000  inhabitants.  Other  impor- 
tant ports  are  Puerto  Plata,  Samana,  Macoris,  Monte 


APPENDIX  429 

Christi,  Sanchez,  and  Azua  in  the  Dominican  Republic; 
Cape  Haitien,  Aux  Cayes,  Jeremie,  Jacmel,  Gonaives, 
and  Miragoane  are  important  Haitien  ports.  In  the 
Dominican  Republic  there  are  also  several  large 
interior  towns,  such  as  La  Vega,  San  Francisco  de 
Macoris,  Santiago,  and  Moca. 

Climate  healthy — where  not  ruined  by  human 
habitations  and  unsanitary  conditions — and  very 
pleasant.  Almost  any  climate  may  be  found  by 
traveling  inland  from  the  coast.  On  the  coast  the 
temperature  varies  from  8o°-84°  during  the  winter 
months  and  from  86°-9O°  during  the  summer.  Nights 
very  cool,  from  48°-5O°  during  winter  and  from 
7o°-75°  in  summer,  due  to  northerly  night  winds. 

History  bloody,  turbulent,  and  closely  associated 
with  the  most  illustrious  personages  of  early  Spanish  do- 
minion in  the  New  World.  Santo  Domingo  City  is  the 
oldest  European  city  in  America;  on  Santo  Domingo 
the  first  settlement  in  the  New  World  was  established 
by  Columbus;  here  the  first  gold  was  found  by  the 
Spaniards;  on  this  island  the  first  blood  was  shed  in 
a  battle  between  Europeans  and  Indians;  Columbus 
was  shipwrecked  on  the  coast  of  this  island;  he  was 
imprisoned  in  the  fortress  at  Santo  Domingo  City;  the 
ruins  of  his  son's  house  still  stand;  in  Santo  Domingo 
was  founded  the  first  university  in  America  and 
Columbus  is  buried  in  the  cathedral  of  the  capital. 
Hernando  Cortez,  Ponce  de  Leon,  Pizarro,  Balboa, 
and  many  notable  Spaniards  lived  on  the  island  and 
set  forth  on  their  historic  expeditions  from  its  shores. 

Discovered    by    Columbus,    December    6,    1492. 


430  APPENDIX 

First  landing  on  northern  coast  near  present  site  of 
Mole  St.  Nicholas.  On  Christmas  Eve,  at  the  place 
now  known  as  Cape  Haitien,  the  flagship  Santa  Maria 
was  wrecked  upon  a  reef  and  Columbus  and  his  men 
were  hospitably  received  by  the  native  Indian  cacique. 
The  wreckage  of  the  caravel  was  brought  ashore  and 
used  in  constructing  a  fort.  Here  forty  of  the  men 
were  left  while  Columbus  continued  his  voyage 
eastward.  In  the  following  year  he  returned,  to  find 
his  fort  destroyed  and  the  men  massacred;  and,  at  a 
spot  fifty  miles  west  of  the  present  town  of  Puerto 
Plata,  a  new  town  was  founded.  This  was  called 
Isabella,  but  it  endured  only  a  short  time,  and  to-day 
a  few  crumbling  walls  are  all  that  mark  this  first 
European  settlement  in  America.  In  1496  Bartholo- 
mew Columbus  founded  Santo  Domingo  City,  and  the 
island  rapidly  prospered  and  became  the  richest  of 
Spain's  colonies.  In  1795,  Hispaniola,  as  it  was 
called,  was  ceded  to  France  by  the  treaty  of  Bale. 
After  the  downfall  of  Napoleon  the  eastern  portion 
was  returned  to  Spain,  the  portion  now  known  as 
Haiti  remaining  as  a  colony  of  France.  In  1822 
the  Spanish  portion  placed  itself  under  Haitien  rule 
but  withdrew  after  the  revolution  of  1843.  Fearing 
negro  invasion  by  the  Haitiens  the  Spanish  speaking 
portion  of  the  island  voluntarily  went  under  Spanish 
rule  in  1861.  In  1863  the  Dominicans  revolted  and  in 
1865  became  independent.  Since  then  the  island 
has  been  torn  by  revolutions,  massacres,  and  uprisings, 
the  French  or  Haitien  portion,  which  won  its  independ- 
ence in  1805,  being  especially  noted  for  the  massacres, 


APPENDIX  431 

revolts,  and  uprisings  which  have  prevented  the  island 
from  developing  or  progressing.  In  1905  the  United 
States  assumed  charge  of  the  customs  in  the  Domini- 
can Republic  and  maintains  a  semi-supervision  of  its 
elections  and  government.  A  similar  arrangement 
was  made  with  Haiti  in  1916. 

Places  of  interest  are  numerous.  There  are  no 
really  first  class  hotels.  (See  Dominican  Republic 
and  Haiti.) 

Several  railway  lines  in  Dominican  Republic. 
One  from  Puerto  Plata  to  Santiago  and  another 
from  Sanchez  to  La  Vega.  In  Haiti,  one  railway 
is  in  operation  from  Port-au-Prince  into  the  interior. 
(For  steamship  routes  see  Haiti  and  Dominican 
Republic.) 

Language  in  Dominican  Republic,  Spanish.  In 
Haiti,  French. 

Currency  in  Dominican  Republic,  United  States. 
In  Haiti,  French  and  Haitien,  but  United  States 
currency  in  common  use. 

SAONA 

A  small  island  off  the  southeastern  coast  of  Santo 
Domingo  and  belonging  to  the  Dominican  Republic. 
Brush-  and  chaparral-covered,  infested  with  mos- 
quitoes, and  of  no  importance. 

SOMBRERO 

A  possession  of  Great  Britain  and  most  northerly 
of  the  eastern  Caribbees. 


432  APPENDIX 

Barren,  barely  above  sea  level,  and  isolated. 

Useful  only  as  a  site  for  the  lighthouse  which  marks 
the  entrance  to  the  Anegada  Passage.  Once  the  source 
of  considerable  phosphate  rock. 

STATIA 

The  West  Indian  appellation  of  St.  Eustatius, 
which  see. 

TOBAGO 

A  British  island  under  jurisdiction  of  Trinidad 
and  about  thirty  miles  northeast  of  the  latter. 

Volcanic,  but  of  ancient  formation;  rough,  well 
wooded,  with  many  streams  and  very  fertile.  Physi- 
cally and  geologically  a  portion  of  South  America. 

Many  small  mountains  or  high  hills  interspersed 
with  beautiful  valleys.  Highest  peak,  Pigeon  Hill, 
1900  feet. 

Length  about  26  miles;  width  about  8  miles.  Area 
about  115  square  miles  or  74,000  acres,  of  which  some 
53,000  are  private  lands,  6500  are  a  rain  and  forest 
reserve,  and  14,000  are  crown  lands  for  sale. 

Population  about  20,000.  Capital,  Scarborough, 
with  3000  inhabitants. 

Chief  products,  cocoanuts,  cocoa,  spices,  fruit, 
cattle. 

Famous  as  the  scene  of  Robinson  Crusoe's  story. 

Climate  very  healthy  and  delightful. 

One  of  the  stormiest  histories  of  any  West  Indian 
island. 

Discovered  by  Spanish.     Settled  by  English,  1625. 


APPENDIX  433 

British  driven  out  by  Caribs  and  then  colonized  by 
Dutch  in  1632.  The  Dutch  were  forced  to  leave  by 
Spaniards  from  Trinidad  and  the  next  settlement 
was  by  the  Duke  of  Courland,  but  his  colony  was 
destroyed  by  Hollanders  in  1658.  The  French  then 
drove  off  the  Dutch  and  were  themselves  attacked 
and  routed  by  British  in  1666.  The  French  retaliated 
by  driving  off  the  English  and  destroying  their  prop- 
erties, and  by  mutual  agreement  Tobago  was  deserted 
and  left  as  a  "neutral  island"  until  1673. 

Seized  by  British,  who  were  attacked  by  the  Dutch, 
and  after  six  years  of  constant  struggles  between  the 
French,  English,  and  Dutch  the  island  was  restored  to 
Holland  in  1679. 

Once  more  declared  a  no-man's  land  in  1684,  it  was 
left  to  its  Carib  owners  until  1744,  when  the  French 
again  took  possession,  only  to  be  attacked  by  the 
British  in  1762.  A  year  later,  1763,  ceded  to  Great 
Britain  by  treaty,  but  seized  by  French  in  1781. 
Taken  from  them  by  the  British  in  1793,  the  latter 
were  compelled  to  restore  the  island  to  France  in  1802. 
Captured  by  the  English  for  the  last  time  in  1803,  it 
was  formally  ceded  to  them  in  1814  and  has  remained 
a  British  colony  ever  since. 

Places  of  interest  are  not  numerous,  the  scenery 
being  the  island's  chief  attraction,  although  the  caves 
are  interesting  and  the  natives  will  point  out  the 
original  "Crusoe's  Cave,"  as  well  as  an  alleged  "foot- 
print "  made  by  Robinson  in  the  solid  rock. 

No  regular  hotel  that  is  good,  but  numerous  board- 
ing places. 
at 


434  APPENDIX 

Reached  by  mail  boats  and  intercolonial  steamers 
from  Trinidad. 

Language  and  currency  as  in  Trinidad. 

TORTOLA 

One  of  the  British  Virgin  Islands  and  largest  of  that 
group.  Situated  northeast  of  St.  Thomas. 

A  mountainous  island  18  miles  in  length  by  7  miles 
wide  and  with  peaks  reaching  nearly  2000  feet  above 
the  sea. 

Capital,  Roadtown,  with  about  500  inhabitants, 
nearly  all  of  whom  are  blacks. 

Of  no  importance  and  almost  deserted.  Formerly 
the  resort  of  buccaneers  and  pirates. 

No  hotels  or  boarding  places. 

Reached  only  by  packet  or  sailboat  from  St.  Thomas 
or  St.  Kitts. 

Language  and  currency  as  in  neighboring  British 
Islands. 

TORTUGA 

A  large  island  belonging  to  Haiti  and  opposite 
Port  de  Paix. 

Heavily  wooded,  mountainous,  and  sparsely  inhab- 
ited. About  twenty  miles  in  length  by  three  miles 
wide  and  with  a  fine  though  small  harbor. 

Formerly  a  stronghold  of  the  buccaneers  and  doubt- 
less contains  more  buried  treasure  than  any  other 
spot  in  the  Antilles. 


APPENDIX  435 

Settled  by  buccaneers  and  pirates  in  1630  after 
they  had  been  driven  from  St.  Kilts  and  other  resorts. 
All  the  ships  and  troops  sent  against  them  by  Spain, 
France  and  England,  were  unsuccessful,  and  for  thirty 
years  the  freebooters  held  the  island  and  defied  the 
world.  From  this  stronghold  they  sent  expeditions 
throughout  the  Spanish  Main,  and  Darien,  Panama, 
and  Porto  Bello  were  sacked  by  pirates  from  Tortuga. 
When  finally  dispersed  many  of  them  settled  on  the 
mainland  of  Haiti  and  the  Dominican  Republic  and 
turned  cattlemen  and  planters. 

No  hotels,  boarding  places,  or  accommodations  of 
any  sort. 

Reached  only  by  small  boat  from  Haitien  ports. 

Language  and  currency  as  in  Haiti. 

There  is  another  Tortuga  situated  off  the  coast  of 
Venezuela  and  belonging  to  that  republic,  but  of  no 
importance.  Neither  of  these  should  be  confounded 
with  the  Dry  Tortugas,  which  are  small  cays  west  of 
Key  West  and  belonging  to  the  United  States. 

TRINIDAD 

Most  southerly  of  West  Indies  and  largest  of  British 
islands  with  exception  of  Jamaica.  Northeast  of 
Venezuela,  from  which  it  is  separated  only  by  the  Gulf 
of  Paria  and  the  narrow  straits  or  "Bocas"  a  few 
hundred  feet  in  width. 

Length  about  55  miles;  width  about  40  miles, 
with  an  area  of  about  1750  square  miles  or  1,122,880 
acres,  with  about  350,000  acres  under  cultivation. 


436  APPENDIX 

Extremely  rugged  and  mountainous  in  the  northern 
part;  wide  plains  and  rolling  hilly  country  in  the 
south.  Very  fertile  and  well  watered  and  heavily 
wooded.  Mainly  of  volcanic  but  ancient  formation 
with  considerable  areas  of  calcareous  formation  and  in 
reality  merely  a  bit  of  the  South  American  continent 
with  practically  the  same  flora  and  fauna. 

Highest  peak,  Tucutche,  3012  feet. 

Population  about  half  a  million.  Capital  and 
principal  port,  Port  of  Spain,  with  70,000  inhabi- 
tants. 

Resources  enormous;  petroleum,  asphalt,  and  many 
minerals  abound;  the  forests  are  filled  with  valuable 
timber,  and  agricultural  possibilities  are  almost 
unlimited. 

Chief  products,  asphalt,  petroleum,  cocoa,  coffee, 
sugar,  timber,  balata,  cocoanuts,  spices,  etc. 

Climate  very  hot  on  coast  of  the  Gulf,  but  cool  and 
pleasant  in  highlands  and  on  windward  coast.  Healthy 
as  a  whole. 

Discovered  by  Columbus,  July  31,  1498,  and  named 
in  honor  of  the  three  prominent  peaks  now  known  as 
the  "Three  Sisters." 

First  settled  by  Spanish  under  Don  Antonio  de 
Berrio  y  Oruna  at  site  of  present  town  of  St.  Joseph 
and  which  they  named  San  Jos6  de  Oruna.  At- 
tacked and  captured  by  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  in  1595, 
who  was  exploring  the  vicinity  in  his  search  for  El 
Dorado. 

The  island,  however,  remained  a  Spanish  possession 
until  1797,  when  captured  by  the  British  under  Sir 


APPENDIX  437 

Ralph  Abercromby.  Has  remained  a  British  colony 
from  that  date  until  the  present  time. 

Places  of  interest  are  many.  About  Port  of  Spain 
may  be  mentioned  the  Savanna  or  Queen's  Park; 
coolie  villages;  Five  Islands,  the  Bocas,  and  the 
caverns  near  St.  Joseph;  Government  House  and 
Public  Gardens.  Within  easy  reach  are  the  Blue 
Basin,  Maraccas  Waterfall,  Maraval  Reservoir, 
Caura  Cataract,  Mud  Volcanoes  near  Princes  Town. 
San  Fernando  is  an  interesting  and  important  town 
connected  with  Port  of  Spain  by  railway  and  with 
Brighton,  La  Brea,  and  other  ports  on  the  Gulf  by 
steamboats.  Trinidad's  greatest  "sight"  is  the  fa- 
mous Pitch  Lake  at  Brighton,  from  which  a  large 
portion  of  the  world's  supply  of  asphalt  is  obtained. 
The  numerous  oil  wells  are  also  worth  seeing,  but  as 
there  are  several  about  the  Pitch  Lake  those  who 
visit  this  natural  wonder  will  be  able  to  satisfy  their 
curiosity  without  making  a  special  trip  to  the  oil 
wells. 

Excellent  hotels  and  many  boarding  places  at  Port 
of  Spain.  Houses  and  bungalows,  furnished,  for  rent 
on  t-he  islands  in  the  Gulf. 

Horses,  carriages,  and  automobiles,  as  well  as  boats, 
for  hire.  Trolley  lines  reach  all  parts  of  Port  of  Spain 
and  the  nearby  villages  and  places  of  interest.  Rail- 
way lines  and  coastal  steamers  ply  between  all 
principal  towns  and  agricultural  districts.  Roads 
excellent,  many  of  asphalt,  and  reaching  all  parts  of 
the  island.  Telephone  and  telegraph  systems  every- 
where. 


438  APPENDIX 

Reached  by  Trinidad  Line  (Trinidad  Trading  & 
Shipping  Co.)  from  New  York  (8  days).  By  Royal 
Mail  (Canadian  Line)  boats  from  Halifax,  Bermuda, 
and  other  British  possessions.  By  Royal  Dutch 
West  India  Line  from  New  York,  via  Haiti  and 
Venezuela.  By  French,  Italian,  and  Spanish  ships 
from  various  South  American  ports.  Ships  of  the 
Lamport  and  Holt,  Lloyd  Braziliero,  and  Booth  lines 
frequently  make  Trinidad  a  port  of  call  from  Brazil- 
ian ports  en  route  to  New  York.  River  steamers 
may  be  taken  to  Ciudad  Bolivar  on  the  Orinoco  and 
trips  may  readily  be  made  to  Margarita,  Curasao, 
Venezuela,  and  the  Guianas. 

Language,  English,  but  nearly  all  merchants  and 
many  of  the  other  people  speak  Spanish  and  French, 
as  there  is  a  very  large  Latin-American  and  French 
population.  Currency,  British,  but  Royal  Bank  of 
Canada,  Colonial  Bank,  and  Trinidad  (local)  notes 
are  used  largely  and  United  States  currency  passes 
freely  everywhere. 

UNION 

One  of  the  Grenadines,  about  midway  between  St. 
Vincent  and  Grenada.  Rich,  fertile,  and  well  wooded. 
Noted  for  its  boats.  Formerly  headquarters  of  an 
important  whale  fishery.  See  Grenadines. 

VIRGIN  GORDA 

One  of  the  British  Virgin  Islands  and  second  largest 
of  the  group. 


APPENDIX 


439 


About  8  miles  in  length  with  an  area  of  about 
50,000  acres.  Mountains  1500  feet  in  height.  Gold, 
silver,  and  copper  exist,  but  have  not  been  exploited. 

Formerly  a  lair  of  the  buccaneers. 

Reached  only  by  small  boat  or  packet  from  neigh- 
boring islands. 

VIRGIN  ISLANDS' 

A  chain  or  group  of  rather  small  islands,  thirty  or 
forty  in  number,  many  of  which  are  mere  reefs  or  rocks 
and  situated  east  of  Porto  Rico  and  about  forty  miles 
distant  from  that  island  at  the  nearest  point. 

Strictly  speaking  the  Virgin  Islands  include  St. 
Thomas  and  St.  John,  but  the  term  is  usually  applied 
to  the  British  islands  only.  These  are  Tortola,  Virgin 
Gorda,  Anegada,  Norman  Island,  etc.,  with  a  total 
area  of  about  sixty  square  miles. 

Mostly  rough,  well  wooded,  and  many  rich  in  min- 
eral resources,  but  sparsely  inhabited  and  with  a 
total  population  of  about  five  thousand,  nearly  all 
blacks  and  colored  people. 

In  early  days  the  favorite  resort  of  pirates  and  free- 
booters whose  occupancy  is  perpetuated  in  the  names 
of  many  of  the  islets,  such  as  Dead  Man's  Chest,  Rum 
Island,  Dutchman's  Cap,  etc. 

Reached  only  by  small  boat  from  neighboring 
islands. 

Language  and  currency  as  in  St.  Kitts  and  other 
British  colonies. 


440 


APPENDIX 
WINDWARD  ISLANDS 


A  federation  of  British  islands,  comprising  St. 
Lucia,  St.  Vincent,  Grenada,  and  the  Grenadines. 
Seat  of  government  at  Grenada.  See  tinder  separate 
islands  for  further  data. 


USEFUL  BITS  OF  INFORMATION 
AUTOMOBILES 

IN  practically  every  island,  with  the  exception  of 
Bermuda,  there  are  numerous  automobiles.  In  some 
of  the  smaller  and  more  mountainous  islands  the  extent 
of  roads  adapted  to  motor  cars  is  very  limited,  but  in 
most  of  the  islands  one  can  reach  all  the  larger  towns 
and  villages  by  automobile.  It  is  hardly  worth  while 
for  the  visitor  to  take  a  car  to  the  West  Indies,  unless 
he  expects  to  remain  in  one  island  for  some  time;  but 
if  spending  a  few  weeks  in  Porto  Rico,  Cuba,  Jamaica, 
Trinidad,  or  Barbados  by  all  means  take  a  car  if  possi- 
ble. The  freight  charges  are  low,  there  is  no  duty — 
or  else  the  duty  collected  will  be  refunded  when  the 
machine  is  taken  from  the  island — and  one  can  see 
much  more  of  the  country  and  may  have  a  much  more 
enjoyable  time  with  a  private  car  than  if  depending 
upon  hiring  one. 

BANKS 

In  every  island  there  are  branches  of  the  Colonial 
Bank  of  London,  the  Royal  Bank  of  Canada,  or  other 
large  banking  houses  where  letters  of  credit,  money 
orders,  travelers'  checks  may  be  cashed  and  any  other 
banking  business  may  be  negotiated. 
441 


442    USEFUL  BITS  OF  INFORMATION 
BATHING 

In  nearly  every  island  there  is  excellent  bathing, 
both  in  fresh  and  salt  water.  Owing  to  the  danger 
of  bathing  in  unfamiliar  places  it  is  always  advisable 
to  ask  the  natives  for  advice  and  information  before 
entering  the  water.  In  many  places  the  poisonous 
manchineel  tree  grows  close  to  the  water  and  is 
liable  to  cause  severe,  or  even  dangerous,  irritation  of 
the  skin;  while  in  other  places,  sea-urchins  with  their 
poisonous  brittle  spines,  Portuguese  men-of-war  with 
their  stinging  tentacles,  the  savage  barracouta  fish,  or 
other  dangerous  forms  of  animal  life  are  abundant. 
Sharks  are  the  least  of  all  dangers  and  the  natives 
seldom  pay  any  attention  to  them,  as  the  sharks  found 
in  shallow  water  are  usually  harmless  species  or  are 
too  well  fed  on  offal  to  molest  human  beings. 

BEGGARS 

In  some  of  the  islands  beggars  are  very  persistent 
and  numerous,  but  it  is  mistaken  charity  to  give  them 
anything,  as  most  of  them  are  professionals,  and  if  the 
visitor  tosses  coins  to  one  he  will  be  followed  and 
besieged  by  scores  of  others.  In  every  island  there 
are  charitable  institutions  and  hospitals.  Moreover, 
it  is  impossible  for  the  natives  to  suffer  from  cold  or 
exposure  in  the  tropics  and  almost  as  impossible  for 
them  to  go  hungry.  In  the  English  colonies  begging 
is  prohibited  by  law. 


USEFUL  BITS  OF  INFORMATION   443 
BOATS 

In  many  of  the  islands  it  is  necessary  to  take  small 
boats  from  the  ship  to  shore  and  vice  versa.  The 
charges  are  very  low,  but  a  bargain  should  always  be 
made  in  advance  and  payment  for  the  round  trip  should 
not  be  made  until  one  is  back  aboard  ship,  as  otherwise 
the  boatman  may  refuse  to  put  you  aboard  without 
an  exorbitant  charge.  In  most  of  the  islands,  how- 
ever, the  tariff  is  fixed  by  law  and  any  complaint 
made  to  a  policeman  will  have  prompt  and  satisfactory 
attention. 

CABLEGRAMS 

All  the  islands  are  connected  with  Europe  and  the 
United  States  by  cables  and  in  many  there  are  also 
wireless  stations.  Cable  charges  are  reasonable,  but 
during  the  war  messages  are  subject  to  censorship  in 
the  British  and  French  colonies. 

CLIMATE 

Although  often  very  hot  at  midday,  yet  the  climate 
of  the  West  Indies  is  far  more  equable  than  our 
summers,  and  the  humid,  prostrating  heat  of  our  north- 
ern cities  is  unknown.  Sunstrokes  never  occur,  but  it 
is  wise  to  remain  quiet  during  the  heat  of  the  day  and 
take  walks  and  other  exercise  early  in  the  mornings 
and  late  in  the  afternoons.  The  nights  are  usually 
cool,  and  by  ascending  the  hills  or  mountains,  one  may 


444   USEFUL  BITS  OF  INFORMATION 

find  almost  any  climate  desired.  The  difference  in 
temperature  between  winter  and  summer  is  very 
slight,  many  of  the  islands  possessing  a  climate  so 
equable  that  a  variation  of  five  degrees  through  the 
year  is  rare.  During  the  summer,  however,  there  is  a 
great  deal  of  rain,  and  gales  and  hurricanes  occur, 
the  latter  usually  following  a  well  defined  area  or  belt 
and  seldom  extending  beyond  it.  Hurricanes,  how- 
ever, are  a  much  exaggerated  bugaboo  and  seldom  cause 
loss  of  life  or  serious  damage.  We  read  of  hundreds  of 
houses  being  destroyed,  but  after  seeing  the  flimsy 
"houses"  of  palm  and  thatch,  the  wonder  is  that  any 
survive  a  decent  gale.  In  many  of  the  islands  hurri- 
canes have  never  occurred,  and  no  one  need  hesitate 
to  visit  the  West  Indies  for  fear  of  these  tropical 
storms. 

CLOTHING 

The  clothing  worn  in  the  West  Indies  is  much  the 
same  as  that  worn  in  the  United  States  in  midsummer. 
White  duck,  pongee,  Palm  Beach  cloth  and  flannels  are 
the  favorite  materials,  but  in  the  British  colonies  serges, 
tweeds,  and  other  heavy  goods  are  worn  for  formal 
occasions,  while  in  the  highlands  spring  weight  cloth- 
ing should  be  worn  and  light  overcoats  are  often  neces- 
sary. Woolen  underclothing  is  preferable  to  cotton  if 
one  expects  to  take  much  exercise.  For  head-covering 
felt,  straw,  and  Panama  hats  are  worn,  as  are  pith 
and  cork  helmets.  There  are  no  particular  styles  for 
clothing  in  the  islands  and  one  may  dress  to  suit  one's 


USEFUL  BITS  OP  INFORMATION   445 

own  personal  tastes  and  requirements;  besides,  what- 
ever an  American  does  or  wears  is  looked  upon  as  a 
"Yankee"  characteristic,  for  the  ways  of  the  Ameri- 
can are  unfathomable  to  the  West  Indian. 


CRIMINALS 

As  a  whole,  the  islands  are  wonderfully  free  from 
crimes  and  criminals.  In  many  places  burglary, 
robbery,  murder,  assault,  and  other  serious  offenses  are 
unknown  and  there  is  not  an  island  in  the  West 
Indies — with  the  exception  of  Haiti — where  a  white 
man  or  woman  may  not  go  where  and  when  he  or 
she  desires  in  perfect  safety. 

DISEASES 

Compared  to  our  own  cities  there  are  few  contagious 
diseases  in  the  West  Indies  and  practically  no  danger 
of  the  casual  visitor  contracting  them.  Typhoid  is 
prevalent  in  some  portions  of  Santo  Domingo.  Small- 
pox of  a  very  mild  form  sometimes  occurs  in  the  vari- 
ous islands;  but  malaria,  mild  stomach  and  bowel 
complaints,  and  dysentery  are  the  commonest  ailments. 
Most  of  the  cases  of  stomach  and  bowel  trouble  may 
be  traced  to  carelessness  and  overindulgence  in  fruits; 
or  are  due  to  sitting  in  wet  or  damp  garments.  Malaria 
is  no  more  common  than  in  the  United  States  and  is 
no  more  dangerous,  save  in  the  swampy,  unhealthy 
districts.  With  reasonable  care  and  common  sense 
one  may  avoid  all  illness  in  the  West  Indies  just  as  well 


446    USEFUL  BITS  OF  INFORMATION 

as  at  home.  The  natives  often  suffer  from  loathsome 
skin  and  filarial  diseases,  but  in  most  places  they  are 
now  shut  up  in  well-conducted  hospitals,  and  more- 
over Northerners  seldom  or  never  contract  these 
diseases. 

DUTIES 

There  is  no  trouble  or  inconvenience  in  regard  to 
customs  or  duties,  as  in  all  the  islands  a  reasonable 
amount  of  dutiable  articles  are  admitted  free  and  in 
most  of  the  islands  the  officials  are  far  more  lenient 
in  this  respect  than  in  the  United  States. 

EXPENSES 

Although  living  is  cheap  in  the  West  Indies,  it  is 
only  comparatively  so.  If  one  lives  upon  native  food 
and  lives  as  do  the  better  class  of  West  Indians  the 
cost  of  living  is  very  low,  but  if  one  lives  as  in  the 
States  the  expenses  will  mount  rapidly.  In  most  of 
the  hotels  the  rates  are  reasonable,  but  the  visitor 
must  not  expect  the  same  service,  food,  and  attention 
as  in  hotels  of  equal  standing  at  home.  Labor,  boat 
and  carriage  hire,  and  similar  expenses  are  very  low. 

FOOD 

As  a  general  rule  the  food  of  the  West  Indies  is 
similar  to  that  of  the  mother  country  of  the  particular 
island.  Fish  is  extensively  eaten,  local  vegetables  are 


USEFUL  BITS  OF  INFORMATION    447 

always  served,  and  white  potatoes  are  usually  con- 
sidered a  necessity  for  strangers,  although  the  soggy 
imported  tubers  are  far  inferior  to  the  native  yams, 
sweet  potatoes,  bread-fruit,  taro,  etc. 

Many  of  the  islands  have  certain  local  dishes 
peculiar  to  themselves  and  which  are  delicious.  Thus, 
there  are  the  giant  frogs  or  "Crapaud"  of  Dominica, 
known  as  Mountain  Chicken;  the  iguanas  or  giant 
lizards  of  the  various  islands;  the  famed  Flying  Fish 
Cutlets  and  Sea  Eggs  of  Barbados,  etc.  Native 
meat,  as  a  rule,  is  tough  and  poor,  but  mutton  is 
usually  good  and  there  are  always  fowl  and  turkeys 
in  abundance  and  one's  health  will  be  far  better  if 
little  meat  is  eaten. 

FRUIT 

The  number  of  fruits  which  are  seen  in  the  West 
Indies  is  almost  unlimited.  Aside  from  the  well 
known  oranges,  citrus  fruits,  melons,  pineapples, 
mangos,  avocado-pears,  etc.,  there  are  innumerable 
strange  fruits  never  seen  in  the  Northern  markets. 
It  is  a  wise  plan  not  to  indulge  too  freely  in  fruit  at 
first,  however,  but  to  accustom  oneself  gradually, 
regardless  of  the  temptation  to  try  every  new  fruit  one 
sees. 

Contrary  to  the  ideas  of  many  people,  the  West 
Indian  fruits  have  definite  seasons,  as  do  our  own, 
and  while  some  varieties  are  to  be  had  throughout 
the  year  they  are  at  their  best  during  certain  months, 
while  others  cannot  be  obtained  except  at  their 


448    USEFUL  BITS  OP  INFORMATION 

regular  season.  As  the  seasons  for  the  fruits  vary 
in  the  different  islands,  no  hard  and  fast  list  can  be 
made.  A  large  number  of  the  best  fruits  are  in  bear- 
ing only  during  the  summer  months  and  hence  are 
seldom  seen  by  the  ordinary  tourist. 

The  following  list  will  prove  a  fairly  accurate  guide 
to  the  fruits  in  season  during  the  various  months  of 
the  year: 

JANUARY.  Orange,  malacca-apple,  tamarind, 
belle-apple. 

FEBRUARY.  Orange,  cashew,  star-apple,  tamarind, 
mamee-apple,  sapodilla. 

MARCH.  Orange,  star-apple,  balata,  cashew, 

shaddock,  sapodilla. 

APRIL.  Orange,  cashew,  mamee-apple,  star- 

apple,  custard-apple,  pineapple,  sapo- 
dilla, cashew. 

MAY.  Orange,  pineapple,  sapodilla,  rose-apple, 

sapote,  mamee-apple,  cashew,  cus- 
tard apple,  jambolan. 

JUNE.  Mango,  malacca-apple,  cashew,  pine- 

apple, sapodilla,  grenadilla,  belle- 
apple,  melons,  gru-gru. 

JULY.  Mango,  sapodilla,  malacca-apple, 

sugar-apple,  mamee,  guava,  soursop, 
avocado-pear,  gru-gru. 

AUGUST.  Mango,  avocado-pear,  sugar-apple, 

guava,  orange,  governor-plum,  hog- 
plum,  shaddock,  mamcc. 


USEFUL  BITS  OF  INFORMATION   449 

SEPTEMBER.  Mangosteen,  golden-apple,  governor- 
plum,  guava,  orange,  avocado-pear, 
sugar-apple. 

OCTOBER.  Mangosteen,  avocado-pear,  grena- 
dilla,  soursop,  sapodilla,  sugar-apple, 
orange,  pois-doux. 

NOVEMBER.  Orange,  guava,  sapodilla,  sugar-apple, 
pois-doux,  avocado-pear,  shaddock. 

DECEMBER.  Orange,  balata,  guava,  avocado-pear, 
melons,  sapodilla. 

INSECT  PESTS 

Many  people  imagine  that  the  West  Indies  swarm 
with  noxious  insects.  In  reality  insects  are  no  more 
troublesome  than  in  the  United  States,  unless  one  goes 
into  the  forest  or  "  bush."  Mosquitoes  occur  in  all  the 
islands,  but  are  seldom  as  abundant  as  in  the  North, 
and  in  every  respectable  house  and  hotel  the  beds  are 
protected  by  mosquito  nets.  Window  or  door  screens 
are  seldom  necessary.  Flies  are  not  as  abundant  as  in 
the  North,  but  ants  of  innumerable  varieties  are  very 
troublesome.  The  huge  wild  cockroaches  at  times 
invade  houses  at  night,  but  the  small  Croton  bugs  and 
house  roaches  are  almost  unknown.  The  most 
troublesome  insect  is  the  red-bug  or  "Bete  Rouge,"  a 
tiny  spider-like  pest  that  buries  under  one's  skin,  caus- 
ing intense  itching  and  irritation.  They  are  found  only 
on  weeds  and  grass  and  the  best  remedy  is  to  rub  the 
afflicted  parts  with  some  greasy  ointment  or  to  touch 
each  red  spot,  where  a  "Bete  Rouge"  is  buried  under 


450    USEFUL  BITS  OF  INFORMATION 

the  skin,  with  a  drop  of  iodine.  In  some  places  they 
are  very  abundant,  while  in  others  they  are  never 
found.  Centipedes  and  scorpions,  as  well  as  wood- 
ticks,  are  not  common,  and  save  in  the  "bush"  one 
seldom  sees  them.  Their  bites  or  "stings"  are  no 
more  to  be  feared  than  the  sting  of  a  bee  or  hornet. 


OWNERSHIP 

The  islands  comprise  British,  French,  Dutch,  Vene- 
zuelan, and  United  States  colonies,  and  independent 
republics;  Great  Britain  owning  the  majority.  The 
islands  are  divided  between  various  governments  as 
follows : 

GREAT  BRITAIN.  Jamaica,  Bahamas,  Turks  Islands, 
Bermuda,  Caymans,  Leeward  and  Windward 
Islands,  British  Virgin  Islands,  Barbados,  Trini- 
dad, and  Tobago. 

FRANCE.  Martinique,  Guadeloupe,  Marie  Galante, 
The  Saintes,  Desirade,  half  of  St.  Martin. 

HOLLAND.  Curasao,  Buen  Aire,  Oruba,  Saba,  St. 
Eustatius,  half  of  St.  Martin  and  dependencies. 

VENEZUELA.  Aves,  Margarita,  and  other  islets  off  the 
coast. 

UNITED  STATES'/  Porto  Rico,  Vieques,  Culebra, 
Mona,  St.  Thomas,  St.  Croix,  St.  John. 

INDEPENDENT  .REPUBLICS.  Cuba,  Haiti,  Dominican 
Republic. 


.USEFUL  BITS  OF  INFORMATION    451 
PASSPORTS 

Although  passports  are  not  essential,  except  in  Haiti 
and  the  Dominican  Republic,  yet  it  is  a  wise  plan  to 
carry  a  passport,  especially  during  the  war,  as  both  the  "jf 
British  and  French  authorities  are  very  suspicious  off    f^L* 
strangers  who  stop  in  their  West  Indian  colonies.     If  j 

merely  taking  the  round  trip  a  passport  is  unnecessary. 

PHOTOGRAPHS 

In  nearly  every  island  there  are  photographers,  and 
views  and  postcards  may  be  purchased,  and  in  all  the 
larger  islands  photographic  films  and  supplies  may  be 
purchased. 

In  Porto  Rico,  Cuba,  Trinidad,  Barbados,  and 
Jamaica  there  are  competent  photographers  where 
films  may  be  developed  and  printed  satisfactorily. 
There  is  no  objection  to  visitors  taking  pictures,  or 
using  cameras,  in  any  of  the  islands  under  normal 
conditions,  but  during  the  war  many  of  the  British 
colonies  have  prohibited  the  use  of  cameras,  and  in  all 
of  the  French  and  British  islands  the  photographing 
of  forts,  troops,  war  vessels,  or  defenses,  as  well  as  wire- 
less stations,  is  strictly  prohibited  and  any  one  found 
taking  such  pictures,  or  with  them  in  his  possession,  is 
liable  to  arrest  and  to  have  the  camera,  films,  and 
pictures  confiscated.  By  inquiring  of  the  customs  or 
police  officers  who  board  the  ship  at  every  port  the 
visitor  can  obtain  information  in  regard  to  such  mat- 
ters and  thus  avoid  a  great  deal  of  unpleasantness. 


452    USEFUL  BITS  OF  INFORMATION 
RAILWAYS 

With  the  exception  of  Barbados  and  Trinidad,  none 
of  the  Lesser  Antilles  have  railway  lines.  The  Greater 
Antilles,  however,  are  all  provided  with  railways, 
Cuba  leading  all  the  islands  in  the  extent  of  its  lines, 
with  Jamaica  next,  followed  by  Porto  Rico  and  Santo 
Domingo. 

SNAKES 

With  the  exception  of  Trinidad,  Martinique,  and 
St.  Lucia,  none  of  the  islands  are  infested  with  poison- 
ous snakes,  and  in  those  three  islands  the  venomous 
serpents  are  rare  and  seldom  seen.  The  fer-de- 
lance,  which  occurs  in  Martinique  and  St.  Lucia,  is 
an  introduced  species  and  in  the  former  island  was 
largely  exterminated  by  the  Mt.  Pelde  eruption. 
Even  in  St.  Lucia  and  Trinidad  there  is  less  danger  of 
being  bitten  by  a  poisonous  snake  than  on  the  Pali- 
sades of  the  Hudson  or  in  any  of  the  mountain  resorts 
of  the  United  States.  In  all  the  other  islands,  small, 
useful,  non-poisonous  snakes  are  found,  but  are  seldom 
seen.  Lizards  of  many  species  are  very  abundant  and 
are  always  in  evidence,  but  all  are  absolutely  harmless 
and  are  protected  and  encouraged,  as  they  are  most 
useful  in  catching  and  devouring  ants,  flies,  mos- 
quitoes, and  other  insects. 


INDEX 


PAGE 

Abaco  Island     .  .    .            355 

PACK 

Battowia  (vide  Grenadines) 

Acklin  Island..                    355 

Aguadilla.       .    .    .              246. 

Aibonito  239  240. 

Beata                                    ^62 

A  juntas                        244  7  A  ^ 

Alameda          .  .  .                 346. 

Bellamar  Caves       .           323 

Andros  Island  .  .           .     355. 

Beauia  .                                ^62 

Anegada         ...    .               35  1. 

Bermuda.                         362  ff 

Anglican  Church..  58   so   ^^7. 

sights                  ^65  ^66 

Anguilla                               ^51. 

Antigua       .           56,  352  406. 

Biminis  Islands                    355 

.          sights                           1S^. 

"Blackbeard's  Castle"         34 

Antilla.                         .  .       327. 

Black  King's  Castle,  223  224  ff 

Antomarchi  Doctor            345» 

Blue  Basin                           iss 

Arecibo              ...    .           245. 

Bluebeard  s  Tower             34 

Arecibo  Road.  .  .                 244. 

Blue  Mountain  Peak,  274  516 

Arroyo.          .    ...               252. 

Boats            443 

A  tares  Castle  318. 

Bog  Walk      271 

Automobiles  441. 
Aves.                                     ^  S4. 

Boiling  Lake  79. 
Bonaire                ....       366 

Azua          .   .               .213 

Botanic  Garden.       .           125 

Bahamas                          4   "\  54. 

Botanic  Stations...  .59,  77,  78. 
Bridgetown  103  ff. 

—  —  siehts                           "\  56 

Brighton                       161,  162 

Balcieux                                356 

British  Virgin  Islands.        406. 

Banks                                  441 

Buen  Ayre          .     ...     366. 

Baracoa                               327 

Barbados                              357 

Cabanas  Castle                    316 

sights                  360  361 

Cablegrams.                         441 

Barbuda  60,  61,  361,  406. 

Caguas  236,237,253. 
Caicos  Island.              299  355 

Camaguey..              118   ^10  ff. 

Bath  Estate                           78. 

Camelo  Ferdinand                13. 

Cane  River  PalL                 287. 

Baths  of    St.  Thomas    the 
Apostle  286 

Cannouan  (vide  Grenadines) 
395- 

453 


454 


INDEX 


PAGE 

Cardenas 325. 

Carriacou 367. 

Castle  Harbor 23. 

Castleton  Gardens. .  .272,  273. 

Castries 91,  93. 

Cathedral  of  the  Immacu- 
late Conception 153. 

Cathedral  Rocks 27,  29. 

Cat  Island 355- 

Caura  Waterfalls 157. 

Caymans 367. 

Cayo  Levantado 185. 

Cayo  Smith 350. 

Charlotte  Amalie 31,  32. 

Christiansted 38. 

Cienfuegos 331. 

Ciudad  Bolivar 165. 

Climate 443. 

Clothing 444. 

Coamo  Springs 241. 

Coast  Islands 4. 

Cobre 347. 

Cockpit  Country 284. 

Codrington  College 113. 

Codringtons.. 60,  61. 

Cojimar ...321. 

Cole's  Cave 114. 

College  of  Pious  Souls... 321. 

Colon  Market 311. 

Colon  Park. ...308. 

Columbus,  Bartholomew,  2 1 1. 
Columbus,  Christopher: 

Battle  with  savages 185. 

Plouse. 204. 

Palace 206. 

Prison 202. 

Remains 207. 

Square 249. 

Statues 207,  294. 

Comercio 255,  256. 

Comercio  Road 254. 

Cortez 344. 

Crab  Island.. 368. 

Criminals 445. 

Crittenden 318. 

Cuba 368  ff. 

,  history 372. 


PAGE 

Cuba,  sights 380,  381. 

Culebra 381. 

,  sights 382. 

Curasao 166  ff.,  382. 

Damiju  River 332. 

Deseada 383. 

Desirade 383,  395. 

De  Soto 313,  314. 

"Devil's  Hole" 21,  22. 

Diablotin 73. 

Diamond  Rock 89,  90. 

Diseases 445. 

Dominica 68,  383,  406. 

,  history 384. 

.sights 384,385- 

Dominican    Republic, 

174,  385  ff. 

,  history 388. 

,  sights 388,  389. 

Don  Christopher's  Cove.  .281. 

Dry  Harbor 287. 

Dumas,  Alex.,  birthplace.. 222. 
Duties 446. 

Eel  Island 352. 

El  Caney 347. 

Eleuthera  Island... 355. 

English  Cathedral 270. 

Expenses 446. 

Exuma  Island 355. 

Farley  Hall 113. 

Fern  Gully 286. 

Fig  Tree  Church 53. 

•  Five  Islands.. ... 145,  157. 

"Five  Sisters" 28. 

Food 446. 

Fort  Charlotte 295. 

Fort-de-France 83,  84. 

Fort  Fincastle 294. 

Fort  Frederick 135. 

Fort  George 134,  135. 

Fort  Matthew 135. 

Fort  St.  George 25. 

Fortune  Island 355. 

Frederick  Street 149. 


INDEX 


455 


PAGE 

PAGE 

Funston,  Gen.  Fred  342. 

Hole  in  the  Wail  356. 
Holy  Trinity  153. 

Gibara  326,  327. 

Hope  Gardens  272. 

Gibb's  Hill  Light  29. 

Humacao  253« 

"Gibraltar  of  the  West 

Isabella  177. 

Glass  Window  365. 

Isabella  la  Torre  178. 

Golden  Vale  281. 

Isle  of  Pines.  .  .  .328,  329,  400. 
Insect  pests  449* 

Gonaives  (Gonave)  39°- 

Gordon  Town  273. 

Jagua  Bay  33°« 

Gorgeous  Isle,  The  53. 

Grand  Pitons  96. 

Jamaica.     .         401  ff. 

Grande  Terre  395- 

,  history    402  ff  . 

Grand  Turk  355 

,  sights  4°5- 

Gran  Etang  137,  138,  139. 
Great  Bahama.                    355 

Jamestown                53. 

Josephine,  Empress,  82,  84,  85. 
Judgment  Cliff  286. 

Greater  Antilles       .               4 

Great  Inagua  Island  355. 

King's  House  ...        .     272. 

Green  Hole                           132 

Grenada                                390 

Kingston  265  ff.  ,401. 

"  history                     391  ff 

Kingstown         125. 

La  Coupe                    .       .  122. 

La  Ferriere                    .       225. 

La  Fuerza                             3!3» 

Lake  Killarney                    35^. 

Guanica  250. 

"  Lake  of  Fire  "  296. 

La  Merced                            339 

Gun  Hill             113. 

La  Socapa  35°- 

Habanilla  Falls  332. 
Haiti  174,  213  ff.,  397  ff. 
,  history  398  ff. 
.          sights                   .  .     399- 

Las  Tunas                            342- 

La  Vega...  .190,  191,  196,  197. 
La  Vega  la  Vieja  197. 
Laurel  Ditch  317. 
Leeward  Islands  4,  406. 

Half  Way-Tree 

Hamilton,    Alexander, 
17,  18,  20. 
,  birthplace  53. 
Harbor  Island  355. 

Little  Snake                         SS^- 

Long  Cay  Island  355. 

Los  Angeles  Church  312. 
"Ma  Falie"  ^4. 

Havana   300  ff. 

—  —  sights                       374  ff. 

Hermitage  of  Monteserrate, 
324- 
Hispaniola.  .  .        174- 

Malecon  304- 

Mandeville                           283. 

Manzanillo  333. 

456 


INDEX 


PAGE 

Maraccas  Waterfall  156. 
Maraval  Reservoir  155. 
Marianao  321. 

PAGE 

"Overflowed  Island"  351. 
Oviedo  209. 
Ownership  450. 

Marie  Galante  395,  407. 
Margarita  406. 
Marine  Square  148,  149. 
Market,  Fort-de-France  85. 
Martinique  68,  407. 
,  sights  408 

"Parque  Central".  .  .304,  305. 
Passports  451. 
Patillas  252. 

Patti,  Adelina  345 

Peace  Tree  347. 
Petee  81. 

Maunabo  252 

Petit  Pitons  96. 

Photographs...                     4  si. 

Mayaguana  Island  355. 

Pigeon  Hill  171] 

Pirate  Henry  Morgan,  262,  263. 
Pitch  Lake  158,  162  ff. 
Plaza  Colon  232. 

Mayaguez  244,  247,  248  ff. 
Military  Road  232,  253. 
Mona  409 

Plymouth  62  ff 

Montego  Bay.                     285 

Point-a-Pltre  66  ff. 

Montserrat.  .  .  .61  ff.,  406,  409. 
Moore,  Thomas.                   22 

Ponce  241  ff 

Ponce  de  Leon: 
House  227 

Remains  230 

Morne  Bruce                         78 

Port  Antonio  279,  280  ff. 

Morne  Ferdon  140. 

Port-au-Prince.  .  .  .221,  222  ff., 

397  ff. 
Porter,  Commodore  41. 

Morro.        .227,  231,  300,  349. 
Morro  Castle                      316 

Mountain  Lake                     78 

Port  of  Spain..  145,  146,  148  ff. 
Porto  Rico  412  ff. 

,  history  413,  414. 

Mount  Petee                       '121 

,  sights  415. 

Nassau  292  ff.,  355. 

Port  Royal  263,  274. 
Prado  304,  308. 

National  Palace  221. 
Nevis  47,  406,  410. 

Public  Garden,  St.  Kitts.  .  .51. 
Puerta  Tierra  233. 

,  sights  41  1. 
New  Castle  274. 

Puerto  Plata  178,  179. 
Punta  Fort                          309 

New  Providence  291,  292. 
New  Providence  Island.  .  .355. 
Norman  Island                   411 

Queen  Anacaona  207,  211. 
Queen's  Park  153,  154. 

Ragged  Island  355. 

Nuestra  Senora  de  la  Caridad, 
340,  347,  348. 
Nuevitas.                             326 

Old  Harbor  Bay  271. 

Redonda  416. 
Rio  Cobre  269,  271,  277. 

Oracabessa  Bay  286. 

Rio  Nuevo                            286 

Oruba  ...411. 

Rio  Piedras..  .                  ..21s. 

INDEX 


457 


PAGE 

Roaring  River  Falls  287. 
Robinson  Crusoe's  residence, 
169,  170. 

PACK 

San  Pedro  de  Macoris  199, 

200  ff. 

San  Salvador  Island           355 

Rodney  Monument  269. 

San  Sebastian..   .                 231 

Roseau..  .                            73  ff 

Rum  Cay  Island  355. 

Santa  Barbara  de  Samana,  187. 
Santa  Clara  335 

Saba  42  ff.,  416. 

Santa  Cruz  36  ff    420 

sights.                          417 

Sagua  la  Grande  326. 

,  sights  380. 

St.  Ann's  286. 

Santo  Cerro  197   198. 

St.  Bartholomew   (St.  Barts), 

Santo  Domingo  212. 

41,  418. 

,  Cathedral  207. 

St.  Catherine's  Park  274. 
St.  Christopher  (St.  Kitts),  418. 

,  City  201  ff. 
Saona  43i« 

St  Croix.                            36  ff 

St.  Eustatius  44  ff. 

Sea  Gardens  35^. 

St.  George  17,  18,  20,  130. 

Sendall  Tunnel  133. 

St  George  Hotel                    24 

Sevilla  del  Oro                    287 

St.  George  Somers  25. 

Sombrero  43*« 

St.  John  35  ff.,  55,  57, 

Somers,  Sir  George  14. 

58,  352,  421. 

Soufriere  78. 

St  John's  Wood                  1  1  1 

St  Kitts                        47  406 

Spanish  Town                     268 

Statia(t'ufe  St  Eustatius)  44  ff 

St  Lucia                          422  ff 

St  Martin                           423 

Tacon  Market                    311 

St  Pierre                   81   82   83 

Tamarind  Tree  Church      271 

St  Thomas               31  ff    424 

Templete                              312 

Tobago                             169  ff 

St  Vincent                    *  "  426 

,  Soufriere,  79,  n8ff.,  121. 

Tortola  434. 

Saintes  (The)  395,  417. 

Samana  Bay  184,  185. 

Trinidad  333,  435  ff. 

Sanchez  188. 

,  history.  436. 

San  Cristobal  228,  231. 

,  sights  437« 

San  Domingo(Santo  Domingo), 

Tucker's  Town  25. 

427  ff.,  429  ff. 

Turks  Islands  297. 

,  sights  431. 

San  Fernando  158,  159  ff. 

Union  438. 

San  Francisco  211. 

University,  First  American, 

San  German  294,  295. 

212. 

San  Geronimo  233. 

Utuado  245. 

San  Juan  227,  228  ff. 

San  Tuan  Hill.  .  .             ,  .  .  347. 

"Vale  of  Paradise"  223. 

San  Miguel  212. 

Valley  of  Petrifactions.  .  .  .353. 

San  Nicolas...                 ..210. 

Vedado.  .  .                       .  .310. 

INDEX 


PAGE 

Vega  ReaL 192,  199. 

Velasquez 344. 

Virgin  Gorda 438. 

Virgin  Islands 4,  439. 

Vita 326. 

Walsingham 22,  23. 

Washington,  George,  116,  117. 
,  gunpowder  plot 15. 


PACK 

Wag  Water  Valley 27^ 

Watling's  Island 355. 

Willemstadt 166. 

Windward  Islands 4,  440. 


Yumuri  Valley.. 


•322,  323- 


Zaza  del  Medio 336. 


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